Republican Governor of Arkansas Asa Hutchinson
Asa HutchinsonNew Alabama abortion law a sign of the times shows Sunday preview: Democrats declare victory in stimulus COVID-19; Vaccination efforts provide hope for the summer Misguided politicians are focused on abortion instead of the pandemic MORE he said on Sunday that it was time for coronavirus “heavy” restrictions and mandates to fall “into oblivion” as his state prepares to remove the mandate from the mask in late March.
On CBS’s “Face the Nation” program, presenter Margaret Brennan asked Hutchinson why he decided to withdraw his mandate from the mask, given the apparent hesitation among many people in Arkansas.
“Well, because we need to continue to wear a mask, to distance ourselves socially until the vaccine is widely accepted, but you can do it in two ways. One is by mandate or you can do it by common sense,” said Hutchinson . .
“I think the time of this pandemic of restrictions and heavy mandates is going to the left, so that people can make good judgments,” he added. “And we expect that to happen even after March 31, if the mask’s mandate is withdrawn.”
“I think that time in this pandemic of restrictions and heavy mandates is going to the left,” @AsaHutchinson account @margbrennan while his state is approaching the date of March 31 to reverse the masks’ mandates, if conditions permit. pic.twitter.com/6mf4QRlNZ7
– Face the nation (@FaceTheNation) March 14, 2021
Brennan also noted that there is a greater degree of hesitation about the vaccine among younger Republicans, with Hutchinson acknowledging that resistance may be worrying in his state, which has voted for the Republican presidential candidate in nine of the last 12 elections.
“We are seeing this problem and the poll numbers are worrying because, in Arkansas, it is a very pro-Trump state in terms of the last election,” said Hutchinson. “And then we see this resistance. Whenever we are opening eligibility for the vaccine, we are advancing very quickly, because we do not have everyone applying to take it.”
Hutchinson emphasized that his government would wait until the end of the month and analyze the data to see if he would remove the mandate from the mask.