The White House criticized Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for fundraising off his flap with President Joe Biden over the administration’s recommendation that children 12 years and younger wear masks in school.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that as a parent, she would prefer public health guidelines aimed at protecting her children be developed by experts and not politicians.
CORONAVIRUS RESURGENCE CATCHES BIDEN OFF GUARD
“Not only is Gov. DeSantis not abiding by public health decisions, he’s fundraising off of this,” Psaki said on Friday. “Our view, as an administration, is that teachers, parents in Florida, [and] parents across the country should have the ability and the knowledge that their kids are going to school and they’re in safe environments. That shouldn’t be too much to ask.”
Republican operatives blasted Psaki’s comments after Biden sent similar emails during the 2020 campaign bashing then-President Donald Trump for his handling of the pandemic.
DeSantis’s political team emailed supporters this week after Biden and the White House ramped up their criticism of the governor, urging him to “get out of the way” as coronavirus cases, hospitalizations, and deaths tick up in his state. Biden and DeSantis had appeared to be friendly alongside one another only last month during the president’s visit to Surfside after the partial condominium collapse.
“Until Joe Biden gets the border secured and this crisis under control, I do not want to hear a blip about COVID from him or his administration,” the fundraising email said.
The note parroted DeSantis’s remarks during a Panama City press conference regarding Hurricane Michael recovery efforts, referring to the number of illegal migrants testing positive for the respiratory illness.
Biden has continued the feud, jokingly responding, “Governor who?” when asked about DeSantis. The White House has also stood firm concerning the futility of Biden calling DeSantis about virus mitigation practices.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Preventions’s recommendation that unvaccinated students wear masks in schools has enraged some parents. Children younger than 12 are not eligible for any of the three vaccinations granted emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration.
