The White House defended Joe Biden’s criticism of the Republican governors of Texas and Mississippi, after the president called their decisions to end mask mandates “Neanderthal thinking.”
White House press secretary Jen Psaki stressed that the president likens the governors’ actions to “the behavior of a Neanderthal, just to make the behavior very clear”. She also said Biden’s comments were a reflection of his frustration at the fact that Americans did not follow public health guidelines to limit their risk of developing coronavirus.
“I do not think his view on wearing a mask is a secret,” Psaki said during the German White House briefing. “And I’m sure if he talks to them next, he’ll pass it on directly.”
The US president said on Wednesday that the country was about to fundamentally change the nature of this disease with the spread of vaccines, adding: “The last thing we need is for the Neanderthal to think that everything is in the meantime. fine. ”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott slammed Biden on Wednesday, telling CNBC that the comments “are not the kind of word a president should use.” Abbott, who has often been criticized for his rhetoric against immigrants, then accused the president of “releasing illegal immigrants into our communities that had Covid” and called it a “Neanderthal approach” to the Covid situation. handle.
Addressing Abbott’s comments on Thursday, Psaki said: ‘We are talking about facts here. This is not factual. She added that it is also the responsibility of state and local governments to test and detect.
Abbott appears to be referring to recent reports from Telemundo, which found that some migrants released by Border Patrol in Brownsville, Texas, subsequently tested positive for Covid-19. Since the city began testing in January, 108 migrants have tested positive, about 6% of all who took a test, the report said.
Abbott’s move to reopen Texas and relinquish its mask mandate is contrary to the advice of top US health officials, who have repeatedly urged countries not to lift Covid-19 restrictions altogether because they warned about a possible fourth increase in cases of coronavirus triggered by new variants.
‘We were very clear that this is not the time to release all restrictions. The next month or two is very important, ”said Dr Rochelle Walensky, director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), on Wednesday.
The president announced on Tuesday that the U.S. would have enough coronavirus vaccines for all adults by the end of May, two months earlier than expected, as his government announced that drugmaker Merck would help produce rival Johnson & Johnson’s shot that by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last weekend for emergency use.
But officials in many states have eased restrictions, some far more than others. Abbott decided to lift the masking mandate of his state and a number of other restrictions, while Mississippi also revoked his masking mandate that began Wednesday.
Michigan Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has eased capacity constraints on restaurants and public and residential gatherings. New York has announced that arts and entertainment could resume by April with a capacity of 33%. In Massachusetts, Gov. Charlie Baker said residents should continue to wear masks in public, but it’s time for more restrictions on businesses to be eased.
Texas will be the most populous U.S. state that does not require residents to wear face masks.
The mayor of the state’s largest city, Houston, disagrees with the move. “It’s a step in the wrong direction unless the governor tries to deduce what happened to the winter storm a little over two weeks ago,” Sylvester Turner said, adding: “I’m very disappointed … it did no sense. “