In an effort to increase vaccinations and protect American workers and consumers, President Joe Biden is working with companies to create vaccination passports so people can prove they’ve been vaccinated against the coronavirus.
In coordination with the private sector, Biden and his team are working in support of proposed vaccination passports that every American who has been vaccinated would receive, allowing them to prove they are safe to resume participating in the economy as businesses begin to reopen.
It’s a smart idea, and one that would force anti-vaxxers to get vaccinated if they want to get into their favorite businesses again. It’s a way to shame them into compliance so we can finally beat the pandemic that has killed over 525,000 Americans.
Of course, Republicans are freaking out about it, even going so far as to ridiculously claim such passports are the “Mark of the Beast” described in the Bible, as QAnon Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) claimed on Twitter.
They are actually talking about people’s ability to buy and sell linked to the vaccine passport.
They might as well call it Biden’s Mark of the Beast.
— Marjorie Taylor Greene 🇺🇸 (@mtgreenee) March 29, 2021
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) also whined by complaining that immigrants don’t have passports.
The Biden Administration:
-Considering a “vaccination passport” for Americans.
-But doesn’t seem to care about passports when it comes to illegal migrants crossing the southern border.
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) March 29, 2021
It should be pointed out that Americans who want to travel overseas have to get a passport to do so. A vaccination passport would really not be any different. A business has the right to know if you are a health risk to their employees and customers. And since many conservatives have decided not to follow any coronavirus guidelines and refuse to get vaccinated, that makes them a huge risk. Every time a coronavirus outbreak occurs at a business, it has to shut down for days or weeks before it can reopen. It costs money. So, passports proving vaccination is an efficient way to be sure a customer or employee is vaccinated. Think of it like being asked for your driver’s license whenever you try to purchase alcohol.
In short, it’s reasonable. And it could also be used to undermine voter suppression tactics enacted by Republicans.
I never imagined how many dishonest sociopaths lived in USA until the Trump cult. They dont have to get a vaccine. Stupid, but fine. But the idea they think we have no right to protect ourselves through passports from their casual lying about having been vaccinated is…expected.
— Kurt “Masks Save Lives” Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) March 29, 2021
Wouldn’t it be interesting if the Biden Administration took one more step and, if we have one, made the vaccine passport a photo id? What better way to kneecap one part of red state voter suppression – a federal photo ID is a federal photo ID. And this one would be easy to get.
— Kurt “Masks Save Lives” Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) March 29, 2021
This is a fantastic idea because it would be a valid federal photo ID that would be far easier to get than a photo ID in any red state. In fact, we could take it even further by requiring such a passport in order to vote, which would mean millions of conservatives would be denied entry to polling places if they are not vaccinated. Basically, their own tactics would be turned against them in an effort to combat the coronavirus. Thus, we can beat the pandemic, help the economy, and make it easier to vote in one fell swoop.
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