Republicans are taking advantage of the intensified debate over coronavirus vaccination passports as part of their strategy to regain control of Congress in 2022.
In interviews and conversations with The Hill, strategists and operatives from the Republican Party recognized the growing urge among Americans to be vaccinated against COVID-19. But many are also betting that the emerging debates over so-called vaccine passports will help them play with voters’ fears of overcoming government and privacy violations.
The idea of vaccine passports has gained increasing attention in recent weeks, as eligibility for COVID-19 vaccinations has expanded rapidly and Americans have begun to see glimpses of a normal post-pandemic on the horizon. The White House has indicated that it will issue basic guidelines for such programs, although it also said that it has no plans to create a centralized federal requirement.
Still, some of the country’s most prominent conservatives have begun to cling to the emerging possibility of passports or vaccine certificates, seeing these proposals as an extension of their campaign to rally the Republican Party base in opposition to coronavirus-related restrictions, such as orders blocking and mask mandates.
“It’s a political winner,” said Ford O’Connell, a Florida-based Republican strategist. “They look at it as a total attack on personal freedoms and the Constitution, but also, it is about protecting the average Florida citizen who wants to live their normal day-to-day lives.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis
Ron DeSantis Parts of Florida County evacuated amid fears of collapse of the wastewater reservoir More states led by the Republican Party risk corporate reactions like the Georgia Health Center: CDC says fully vaccinated people can travel safely | Biden laments those who act as if there is a COVID-19 fight | Will vaccine passports be the biggest campaign theme of 2022? MORE is among the Republicans who spoke out early against the proposals. He criticized the idea of vaccine passports at a news conference on Monday, calling it “unacceptable” for local governments or companies to require proof of vaccination in order for people to “participate in normal society”.
On Friday, he signed an executive order banning any future vaccination certificate requirements in Florida, and asked the Republican-controlled state legislature to draft a bill to enshrine that policy as law.
Republicans hope that their initial efforts to define vaccine passports as a symbol of the government’s exaggeration will help to contain what Democrats see as their most powerful political weapon in the half of 2022: their efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic and the crisis resulting economic impact.
Democrats hope that a huge $ 1.9 trillion stimulus package sanctioned last month, along with a broad proposal to reform the country’s infrastructure, will help them avoid the typical electoral hoax that a new president’s party usually does. see in the first semesters after his inauguration. .
Some Republicans compared the offensive against vaccine passports with the party’s campaign against the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in the 2010 midterm elections, when the Republican Party managed to bring voters together in opposition to broad health care reforms and government spending under the Obama administration.
That year, Democrats lost 63 seats in the House and, consequently, their majority in the lower house.
“It is not a COVID discussion for Republicans. It is a discussion about freedom. It is a discussion about the role of the government, ”said a strategist for the Republican Party. “Would I prefer to have a COVID discussion next year? No. But we want to have this discussion about freedom. “
Republicans need to win five seats in the House and only one in the Senate next year to resume their majorities in both houses, a goal that is well within the reach of the Republican Party.
But Republicans are also defending more seats in the Senate next year than Democrats, including several vacancies in perennial battle states like Pennsylvania and North Carolina. They are waiting for the voter’s reaction President biden
Joe BidenLawmakers say fixing the border crisis is Biden’s job Trump asks Republicans to boycott companies amid the controversial White House electoral law: The Republican Party ‘fought to articulate a reason’ to oppose the infrastructure plan MORE and the Democrats’ Congressional agenda will be enough to give them back to the majority.
Not everyone at the GOP is confident that opposition to vaccine passports will be a winning issue for them.
“It’s red meat for the base, to be sure, but that doesn’t help us regain the medium,” a veteran Republican campaign advisor told The Hill. “It’s just another culture war … and it also means talking about COVID instead of the damage being done by Democrats.”
Research shows that an increasing number of Americans have either received one of the approved vaccines against coronavirus or plan to be vaccinated as soon as possible. A Gallup survey released on Tuesday found that about three out of four Americans are willing to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
Only about a quarter of respondents – 26 percent – said they did not want to receive one of the three vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Furthermore, categorically rejecting the notion of passports or vaccine certificates can put many Republicans in conflict with the business community with which they have so aligned.
The US Chamber of Commerce, the powerful trade group that traditionally supports Republicans, joined several commercial airline organizations and labor unions in a letter to the White House recovery coordinator COVID-19. Jeff Zients
Jeff ZientsArkansas ends the mask’s term, but expands vaccine eligibility to all adults Night care: More Johnson & Johnson doses coming in next week | This is where schools are back on track | WHO asks rich countries to donate 10 million doses of the White House vaccine: 11 million doses from Johnson & Johnson next week MORE last month, urging the Biden government to “rapidly develop a uniform and targeted federal guidance for temporary COVID-19 (CHC) health credentials, covering testing and vaccinations.”
Sen. Mike Lee
Michael (Mike) Shumway LeeGeorgia County says removal of the All-Star game will cost tourism 0 million Republican Party senators push to end MLB antitrust status Republicans pressure Google, Apple and Amazon over Parler removals | Texas Senate blocks social media platforms from banning users based on policy MORE (R-Utah) suggested something like a middle ground when it comes to vaccine passports, saying in an interview on the “Utah Politics” podcast on Friday that private companies should have the option of using such tools, while insisting that the government should stay away from the problem.
“I think vaccines are good and I think that once people get a vaccine, they have the ability to present credentials to private owners who can decide that they want their customers to be vaccinated,” said Lee.
“You will never want to put us in a position where our own government has any role in the way human beings move within our own borders,” he added. “This is something that the American people, regardless of their political inclinations, do not want.”
Meanwhile, some Republicans are taking a wait-and-see approach to the vaccine passport argument. In particular, they are waiting to see if President Trump
Donald TrumpLawmakers say fixing the border crisis is Biden’s job Trump asks Republicans to boycott companies amid controversy over voting law Georgia County says removing the All-Star game will cost tourism 0M MORE ponders the issue.
“The X factor in all of this – if it is going to become a big problem for Republicans – is what the DJT says about it,” said a former Trump campaign official, referring to the former president’s initials. “Candidates will look for clues, because he is still the most important person in this party.”