Republicans have won their long-standing effort to repeal the Pentagon’s mandate on the coronavirus vaccine, according to Fox News.
Congress is expected to repeal the Pentagon mandate requiring troops to receive the coronavirus vaccine in its annual defense policy bill that the House will vote on later this week, Fox News reported Tuesday.
Republicans on Tuesday managed to remove the mandate from the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act despite objections from the White House and Department of Defense to the measure the day before.
It comes after a group of 13 Republican senators, led by Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), called on Congress in a letter last week to repeal Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s August 2021 mandate that required all service members to be vaccinated or expulsion for refusing an order.
“America simply cannot afford to discharge our brave men and women in uniform and lose the investments we have made in each of them due to inept bureaucratic policies,” the GOP members wrote.
Other signatories included Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mississippi), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Roger Marshall (R-Kansas), Ron Johnson (R-Wisc., Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.) , Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Mississippi), Mike Lee (R-Utah), and Rick Scott and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)
The signatories to the letter had also called for all troops discharged for refusing vaccine orders to be reinstated on the back pay, noting that 3,400 had been discharged in April. However, that request will not appear in the $847 billion bill, according to Fox News.
The NDAA sets defense policy and spending priorities for the fiscal year 2023. Without its approval, the Pentagon must continue operating on the 2022 version and move forward with resolution funding until the matter is resolved. This funding is expected to run out on December 16.
Although Democrats largely supported the mandate, Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) veered from his party on Friday, telling Politico he was “open” to discussing his removal if he moves forward with legislation, noting that “the pandemic is over. “out of order.”
“I was a big proponent of the vaccine mandate when we did it, a big proponent of the covid restrictions put in place by the Department of Defense and others,” Smith said. “But right now, does it make sense to have that policy starting in August 2021?” Smith said, according to Politico.
President Joe Biden himself said so to the Republican leader of the House of Representatives. Kevin McCarthy was open to considering removing the mandate, but Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s opposition to the move changed his mind, White House press secretary Karine Jeanne-Pierre said Monday.
“The president told him he would consider it, but he also made it clear that he wanted to consult with the Pentagon,” she said. “The secretary of defense has since recommended that we keep the mandate because the requirement of COVID vaccination has been introduced to keep our service members safe, healthy, and ready for service.”
The coronavirus vaccine is one of the dozens the Defense Department has ordered for troops, something the military has been doing “almost since its inception,” according to the Army. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Monday that requiring the vaccines was “largely a health and force readiness issue.”
“[Biden] continues to believe that all Americans, including those in the military, should be vaccinated and strengthened against COVID-19,” Kirby said. “As you have all seen for yourself, vaccines are saving lives, including our men and women in uniform.”
But Republicans argued that removing the mandate would encourage military recruiting, which is 23 percent below annual targets, according to the GOP letter.
“Because of cost and recruitment difficulties, the loss of thousands of troops due to their vaccination status is a matter of preparedness that the [Pentagon] should take seriously,” the Republicans wrote in the letter. “While the Department of Defense certainly must make decisions that will enhance military readiness, the effects of the mandate are antithetical to our readiness of forces, and the policy must be repealed.”
The final text of the bill is expected to be released on Tuesday, and the House will address the matter on Thursday.
