Ted Cruz Takes Action to Prevent Biden Admin from Enacting Vaccine Passport Requirements
Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz announced on “Fox & Friends” on Friday that he has introduced legislation to prohibit the federal government and employers from forcing Americans to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
Cruz told Fox News host Steve Doocy, “I think vaccines are terrific. I’ve had the vaccine myself. I think it’s given us a lot of freedom, but I think there’s a real potential for government overreach.
“And I don’t believe anyone should be forced to take the vaccine. It should be your personal choice,” Cruz added.
The government should not be forcing people to get vaccinated. pic.twitter.com/81oY1VzIub
— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) May 28, 2021
As some employers have considered requiring a coronavirus vaccine for workers, Cruz argued, “You should make the choice based on your health, based on the decisions you want.”
The senator said he had “introduced this week legislation that would, number one, prohibit any federal vaccine passport, prohibit the Biden administration from doing anything to mandate vaccines.”
The act would also keep employers from firing workers based on whether a person has received a COVID-19 vaccine, Cruz said.
Cruz said “it also prohibits discrimination in employment. We’re seeing some places where employers are saying, ‘If you’re not vaccinated, you’re fired,’ and that ought to be illegal.”
The senator argued, “Your health decisions are yours to make and it shouldn’t be your boss, it shouldn’t be the government, it shouldn’t be anyone else forcing you to make those decisions.”
When Doocy asked if the bill will receive bipartisan support, Cruz responded, “I hope so, and we’ll see. I mean, this is a very divided Congress, so bipartisan support is elusive these days.”
The Biden administration has said it will not require Americans to receive the vaccine.
But this stance has not addressed the choices of employers, though some states have taken it upon themselves to do so through anti-vaccine passport legislation.
On Tuesday, Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, for instance, signed an executive order banning any requirement for COVID-19 vaccine passports to enter the state.
“There’s a lot of concern out there that people are going to be forced to do something with their own medical decisions,” he said, according to Fox News. “We do not support that.”
Republican Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey also signed an executive order in April that amounted to an all-out ban on “vaccine passports.”
#COVID19 VACCINE UPDATE:
I’ve issued an Executive Order banning “vaccine passports” and preventing state and local governments from requiring Arizonans to provide their #COVID19 vaccination status to receive service or enter an area. 1/
— Doug Ducey (@dougducey) April 19, 2021
Several other states have also banned vaccine passports through executive orders or legislation, according to U.S. News & World Report.
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