President Biden’s Vaccine Mandate is Dangerous

This week, I cosponsored Congressman Fred Keller's Congressional Review Act to block President Joe Biden's vaccine mandate on businesses with over 100 workers.

During my annual agriculture tour of the Fourth District a few weeks ago, farmers, ranchers, and producers made clear what this mandate will mean for them and how it will cripple our economy, especially our food supply. The existing labor shortage has affected the supply chain crisis to such an extent that farmers face issues feeding their animals and producers face new challenges getting their goods to market. During a recent committee hearing, the leader of the American Trucking Associations told Congress how detrimental the vaccine mandate will be to his industry, where there is already a lack of drivers and where increasing fuel costs are pushing drivers to the limit.

I've heard similar concerns about the federal vaccine mandate from many other industries. Businesses in the Fourth District never asked for a vaccine mandate. They do not want one, and they do not need one. Businesses are already dealing with crushing labor shortages and supply chain issues. If you think inflation is out of control now, see what happens when our agriculture and transportation sectors lose essential workers to this mandate.

If this mandate goes into effect, trucking companies expect to see a serious loss of personnel. Fewer truckers mean longer wait times and higher prices. Regardless of vaccination status, every American will feel the pain when prices skyrocket for basic goods and services.

President Biden should visit districts like mine and see firsthand how his policies are destroying livelihoods. I urge the President to rescind this unnecessary mandate.