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BREAKING: Biden says he will force Americans to wear masks for 100 days, calls it a ‘patriotic act’

‘It will start with my signing an order on day one to require masks, where I can under the law, like federal buildings, interstate travel on planes, trains, and buses,’ Biden said.
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Michael
Haynes
Michael Haynes

WASHINGTON, D.C., December 9, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – Former Vice President Joe Biden has promised to force Americans to wear a mask for 100 days should he assume office in January, calling it a “patriotic act.” During an address earlier today, Biden broached the subject of mandatory mask wearing by noting that he will enforce masks wherever possible.

“My first 100 days is going to require — I’m going to ask for a masking plan — everyone, for the first 100 days of my administration, to wear a mask.”

Biden announced, “It will start with my signing an order on day one to require masks, where I can under the law, like federal buildings, interstate travel on planes, trains, and buses. I’ll also be working with the governors and mayors to do the same in their states and their cities.”

But in addition to his legal action, the former vice president said he would appeal to the nation in order to encourage mask wearing. “We’re going to require a mask wherever possible, but this goes beyond government action. And so, as the new president, I’m going to speak directly to the American people and say what I’m saying now: We need your help. Wear a mask for just 100 days.”

“It’s the easiest thing you can do to reduce COVID cases, hospitalizations, and death,” he claimed. “Help yourself, your family, and your community. Whatever your politics or point of view — mask for 100 days once we take office.”

Biden also went so far as to equate mask-wearing to being a symbol of patriotic duty, stating that a mask is an apolitical action: “100 days to make a difference. It’s not a political statement, it’s a patriotic act.”

He closed by saying that the 100-day mask mandate would only be a beginning of efforts against the spread of the virus. “It won’t be the end of our efforts, but it’s a necessary and easy beginning, an easy start.”

It is not the first time that Biden has promised to make masks mandatory, should he become president. Before the election, he tweeted that he would “implement nationwide mask mandates.”

After the election, on November 9, he re-iterated the message, spending a large part of his address urging Americans to wear masks, and stating that it is “the single most effective thing we can do to stop the spread of COVID.”

He further claimed, “We can save tens of thousands of lives if everyone just wears a mask for the next few months. So please, I implore you, wear a mask.” The Biden transition website affirms that Biden would make masks mandatory across the country.

President Trump has given mixed messages about mask wearing, originally being skeptical on their benefit, but having more recently softened his stance on their use. Speaking at a rally prior to the election, he noted that nothing can do away with the need to turn to God, no matter the health precautions taken. “Masks, no masks, everything, you can do all you want, but you know, you still need help from the Boss, we need help from the Boss, that’s what happens, we need help,” Trump said, pointing to the sky as an audience member shouted, “Amen.”

Responding to a mask mandate proposed by Biden in the summer, Trump replied, “I trust the American people, and the governors want to do the right thing, to make the right decisions, and Joe doesn’t,” according to CBS News.

He also suggested a mask mandate would override the individual liberties of the American people. “If the president has the unilateral power to order every single citizen to cover their face in nearly all instances, what other powers does he have?” Trump asked.

However, he has also dubbed mask wearing a “patriotic thing to do.” Trump tweeted an image of himself in a mask, emblazoned with the presidential seal, captioned, “[Many] people say that it is Patriotic to wear a face mask when you can’t socially distance. There is nobody more Patriotic than me, your favorite President!”

During the September 29 presidential debate, the president again signaled his support for mask wearing, although without advocating for it as much as Biden did. “When needed, I wear masks. I don’t wear masks like him,” he said of Mr. Biden. “Every time you see him, he’s got a mask. He could be speaking 200 feet away from them, and he shows up with the biggest mask I’ve ever seen.”

As for the effectiveness of masks themselves, the CDC has itself noted that mask wearing is not certain to prevent anyone from catching COVID-19, if worn in close proximity to an infected person for more than 15 minutes.

America’s Frontline Doctors, a rapidly growing group of physicians critical of the government’s response to COVID-19, called masks “completely irrelevant” in stopping the virus: “The facts are not in dispute: masks are completely irrelevant to blocking the SARS-CoV-2 virus.”

Data on the number of cases in states with strict mask mandates have also shown that mask wearing fails to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

Some months ago, Fox News host, Tucker Carlson, styled mask mandates as “obedience training.” Commentating on the laws requiring masks to be worn outside in many areas, Carlson warned that such rules are dangerous and unscientific. “Rules like that are not about public health. Rules like that are a form of obedience training. They’re trying to see what they can make you do.”

Apart from mandating masks, Biden also announced he plans on delivering 100 million COVID-19 vaccine shots to the American public in his first 100 days in office.

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