Reeves: Lawsuit against COVID mandate could come by Friday

(The Center Square) – Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said a lawsuit against the Biden administration over the COVID-19 employer vaccination mandate could be filed by the end of the week.

The governor called the vaccine mandates “one of the most shocking attacks on personal liberty we have seen in this country in my lifetime,” in a statement released on Twitter. Reeves said he is a strong supporter of the vaccine, has urged every resident to talk to their doctor and make a personal decision about the vaccine.

Joe Biden’s vaccine mandates are one of the most shocking attacks on personal liberty we have seen in this country during my lifetime. I am a strong supporter of the COVID vaccines. These federal mandates, however, threaten every Mississippian's individual liberties. pic.twitter.com/S8JomJsQK5— Tate Reeves (@tatereeves) November 2, 2021

However, the governor won’t let federal mandates “threaten every Mississippian’s individual liberties” as the mandate is “nothing short of tyranny.”

“The best path our founders provided states to push back on federal tyranny is through the courts,” Reeves said in the statement. “I’ve instructed every branch of government that I control to work in support of this suit and this cause. We are also standing alongside workers, pushing back against this overreach. And it is slowly working.”

The Biden administration rolled out a COVID-19 vaccination mandate Sept. 9 for public and private sector employers with more than 100 employees, calling for workers to be fully vaccinated or wear masks and be routinely tested.

Reeves said new guidance released Monday said employers must honor and give deference to religious convictions and health status.

“The new guidance creates the opportunity for broad discretion by employers: they can protect their workers from this unlawful mandate,” Reeves said. “That is what every Mississippi institution should do. While we fight the federal mandates in the courts, the new guidance opens the door for Mississippi workers to keep their jobs if you have a sincerely held conviction.”

Tate reminded residents the state will not subsidize or support institutions who do not go out of their way to respect basic human rights.

“Every Mississippi business, university and hospital should bend over backwards to accommodate and presume goodwill,” Reeves said. “We will be listening to you, and working to protect lives and livelihoods – just as we have done since day one of this pandemic.”

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