RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Texas Governor Greg Abbott (Republican) has announced a lawsuit against the Biden administration (Democrat), challenging the Covid 19 vaccination requirement for National Guard members.
In his opinion, this falls under state jurisdiction, and therefore the central government has no influence here. It should be noted here that Texas takes federalism very seriously and also traditionally flies the state flag over that of the United States.
In a letter Tuesday to Major General Tracy Norris, the adjutant general of the Texas Department of Military Affairs, Abbott said he had issued an order that no member of the state’s National Guard would be “penalized” for not getting vaccinated.
Even though recent regulations have resulted in numerous military personnel losing their jobs, Abbott has made clear for weeks that he refuses to impose a vaccination mandate on his state’s military, even in the face of a mandate issued by the Pentagon in August.
According to the order, members of the Army National Guard have until June 30 to get vaccinated with the experimental vaccines.
ABBOTT IS NOT ALONE
Several governors have opposed the White House on the issue of authority for National Guard members. Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt filed a lawsuit. However, that ultimately failed because he also tried to block mandates for the Guard.
According to Abbot, however, he is the commander-in-chief of the Texas National Guard and has ultimate authority over it. This is because Title 32 of the U.S. Code states that Guard members are under state authority.
Unless they are called up at the direction of the federal government, which is usually in the case of a foreign deployment or national emergency.
Under Title 10, President Joe Biden can place Guard members under federal command, but they would ultimately revert to state control once those orders are finalized. This puts vaccine mandates in a legal gray area because a military vaccine mandate would mean that National Guard soldiers could not be called up for federal missions should a challenge as Abbot’s succeed.
But it could also mean that National Guard soldiers would be required to be vaccinated against Covid-19 if their unit receives a federal order, which would mean Abbott’s challenge would only stop the mandate if it were successful.
Abbott’s letter acknowledges that his efforts could fail but argues that the federal courts must decide whether Biden violated the law by “undermining” Abbott’s purported authority with the mandate.
UNCONSTITUTIONAL
According to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, the lawsuit “seeks protection from the federal government’s unconstitutional actions to force Texas, through its governor, to comply with federal orders and impose federally mandated disciplinary measures. On its National Guardsmen.”
The lawsuit states that it takes neither a pro-vaccine nor an anti-vaccine position, arguing that the mandate will reduce the state’s forces and impair its ability to respond in an emergency.
Late last year, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced that unvaccinated National Guard members would be barred from exercises and training required to maintain their Guard status, thus losing their pay, pensions, and other federal benefits.
The Pentagon has previously said it has the right to set medical readiness requirements, including vaccinations. On Tuesday, a federal judge in Texas ruled that the Navy cannot discipline 35 sailors who challenged the vaccination mandate in court.
He said the Navy violated the sailors’ First Amendment rights and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act when it denied all requests for religious exemption.
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