Donald Rainwater ran this year an unusually popular governor campaign for a Libertarian Party candidate. As I wrote in early October, the popularity of Rainwater’s campaign appeared to arise largely because of his standing out as the candidate in the race for Indiana governor who presented clear and strong opposition to the reelection-seeking Republican governor’s tyrannical coronavirus mandates, while the Democratic contender argued the governor’s mandates were not severe enough.
Tag: governor
Indiana’s Republican Governor Eric J. Holcomb has lost support from many individuals who months back would be counted as within his solid base of support for his reelection in the upcoming November election. Much of the reason for this loss of support appears to arise from two facts. First, Holcomb imposed, beginning in March, devastating coronavirus crackdown mandates in the state and added in July a mask mandate that is still in force. Second, Holcomb faces a Libertarian Party opponent in the upcoming November election who clearly and strongly opposes these mandates.
Some of the harshest coronavirus mandates in America have been imposed by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. On Friday, the state Supreme Court ruled against the continuation of those unilateral mandates, saying under state law they should have expired months ago.
The Republican Party of Texas executive committee has taken a heroic action that could serve as an example for Republican and Democratic parties across America. It has adopted, by a 54 to 4 vote, a resolution clearly and emphatically demanding that Texas Governor Greg Abbott immediately end all the liberty-repressing measures that, over the last six months while the state legislature has been in recess, Abbott has imposed unilaterally in the name of countering coronavirus.
The rebuke and demand of the resolution are particularly strong given that they come from Abbott’s own party.
Texas Governor Greg Abbot, in an April 27 executive order concerning coronavirus, declared: “Individuals are encouraged to wear appropriate face coverings, but no jurisdiction can impose a civil or criminal penalty for failure to wear a face covering.” This executive order provision stopped in their tracks local governments that sought to enforce mask mandates as part of their coronavirus crackdowns.
Because of his stand against mask mandates, Abbott gained praise for defending liberty. But, on Wednesday, Abbot turned his back on liberty when, in a KWTX-TV of Waco, Texas interview, he endorsed local governments ordering stores and other businesses to require people at the businesses to wear masks.
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Virginia’s Statewide Mask Mandate
Starting Friday, people ten years old and older who are indoors just about anywhere in Virginia other than in private homes will be required by a new executive order of Virginia Governor Ralph Northam to “cover their mouth and nose with a face covering, as described and recommended by” the United Sates government’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Further, the mandate even requires wearing such a mask when outside at a long list of places “if a distance of six feet from every other person cannot be maintained.”
Oh brother. Indeed, oh Big Brother.
Isn’t lifting the prohibition on reopening businesses that were required to close in the coronavirus crackdown supposed to provide greater respect for individual rights? It seems that that is not the view of some politicians, including Washington Governor Jay Inslee.
Politicians across America who have been trampling on liberty via a multitude of mandates imposed in the name of countering coronavirus should beware. There may be a court of jurisdiction stomping out your tyrannical efforts soon.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court led the way to restoring respect for limits on government power on Wednesday when it voided much of Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers’ restrictions on commerce, travel, and other exercises of liberty purportedly imposed to protect people’s health.
Martin “Modey” Hicks, the mayor of Grants, New Mexico, has had enough of the mandate that businesses remain closed in the name of countering coronavirus. Russell Contreras reported last week at the Associated Press that Hicks, in defiance of an ongoing shutdown order from New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, “said he’s giving businesses permission to reopen on Monday and is ordering the police force in the city of about 9,000 people to prevent any State Police officers from issuing lockdown violation citations.”
If many more politicians viewed the coronavirus crackdown the way Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman has viewed it, America may have avoided plummeting into economic devastation with tens of millions of people losing their jobs and with many small businesses closed down never to reopen due to the financial hit taken by their owners.
Many Americans may also have retained their ability to exercise freely individual rights, such as by traveling where they choose, visiting with friends and family, and taking other actions local, state, and national governments have forbade in the name of countering coronavirus.