WASHINGTON (WV News) — Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., on Wednesday joined 13 other Senate Republicans at a press conference outlining their opposition to President Joe Biden's COVID-19 vaccine mandate for private businesses.
The Biden Administration is instituting the mandate for businesses with 100 or more employees by directing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to implement an Emergency Temporary Standard.
The group, led by Indiana Sen. Mike Braun, voiced their support of a resolution to strike down the rule under the Congressional Review Act.
The act allows striking down certain rules made by federal agencies with the successful passage of a joint resolution by both houses of Congress. Like all legislation, the resolution would then move to the president for signing and would be subject to presidential veto, but that veto could be overridden by a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers.
During her remarks, Sen. Capito noted concerns about their employment constituents had brought to her at a recent event.
"At a telephone town hall last night, the anxiety of people in my state of West Virginia — and I'm sure it's shared with all of our states — over this vaccine mandate is real," Capito said. "It's daunting to families as they're facing higher bills for their gas and their heating. They are very concerned about what this would do to their long-term ability to get a job, keep the job; and I think they realize that this is an invasion into their own ability to make decisions about themselves in their health care."
Under OSHA's rule, covered employers are required to develop implement and enforce one of two policies: a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy; or a policy requiring employees to choose to either be vaccinated or undergo regular COVID-19 testing and wear a face covering at work.
"If you look at my state 40% of my state's workforce stands to lose their job under this mandate. Those were manufacturing jobs. Those are public service jobs. Those are small business, smaller businesses jobs. It's all across the spectrum. And it will be a killer to our economy," Capito said.
She also noted that Biden at one point had indicated he would not implement a vaccine mandate, saying the president "went back on his word."
"I'd like to flashback to a year ago. In response to a question, President Biden, and I believe he was President-elect Biden at the time, when asked about a mandate for the COVID-19 vaccine said, 'No, I don't think it should be mandatory. I wouldn't demand it to be mandatory,' he said, and we've seen through the year that he has gone back on his word," Capito said.
While she and other leaders continue to encourage everyone to get vaccinated against COVID-19, Capito believes a mandate goes too far.
"Many of us, if not all of us, every time we had the opportunity are encouraging folks in our state (to get vaccinated) for their own protection. But that encouraging and requiring are two different things.
"(The mandate is) bigger than killing the economy. It's killing the American spirit of being able to make decisions about yourself to be respected for that and to find the best way to find the healthiest reaction to this pandemic."
Capito said she was proud to join her fellow Republicans in supporting the CRA vote.
"I'm very, very pleased to be joining the effort to try to stop this federal overreach, and I think President Biden should listen to his own words of a year ago: A mandate is not necessary; it's not something he would put into effect; and it's something he does not believe in," she said.
Sen. Braun indicated the measure has at least some Democratic support in the Senate. He and other senators referred to the effort as bipartisan.
The Senate is set to vote on the CRA challenge Wednesday evening.
If the measure were to be passed by the Senate, it would likely face heightened opposition in the House, which has a larger, but still slim, Democrat majority than the evenly split upper house.
OHSA's mandate has already been temporarily halted by a court order.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a motion to stay the mandate on Nov. 12. As of that time, the agency was ordered "take no steps to implement or enforce" the ETS "until further court order," according to OSHA.