Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo scolded President Joe Biden for still kicking soldiers out of the military for not getting vaccinated against COVID-19 after declaring the pandemic’s end during a “60 Minutes” interview on CBS Sunday.
“Biden now says ‘the pandemic is over’ as he’s kicking tens of thousands of healthy soldiers out of the military with his COVID vaccine mandate,” Pompeo posted on Twitter Monday. “These soldiers should be reinstated immediately.”
The interview on the CBS News “6o Minutes” program aired Sunday night, showed the President and CBS News correspondent Scott Pelley touring the first Detroit Auto Show in the three years since the onset of COVID-19.
“The pandemic is over,” Biden said. “We still have a problem with COVID. We're still doing a lotta work on it. It's — but the pandemic is over. If you notice, no one's wearing masks. Everybody seems to be in pretty good shape.”
Despite Biden stating the end of the pandemic during the interview, his administration has not ended the emergency declaration by former President Donald Trump in 2020, or the requirement that all federal employees, including the military be vaccinated against the disease.
In July, the National Guard Association reported that unvaccinated Guard members would not be able to participate in training sessions, drills, or activities that generated pay or retirement credits, impacting up to 40,000 troops.
“Maintaining readiness continues to be among the U.S. Army’s highest priorities," the U.S. Army Public Affairs Department said in a statement at the time. “Soldiers who refuse the vaccination order without an approved or pending exemption request are subject to adverse administrative actions, including flags, bars to service, and official reprimands. In the future, Soldiers who continue to refuse the vaccination order without an exemption may be subject to additional adverse administrative action, including separation.”
According to the report, 88.6% of the Guard was vaccinated as of July 1, following the June 30 deadline.
“Our service members are the bedrock of America,” Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., said in the report. “Firing 40,000 Guardsmen for refusing the COVID vaccine would be both a complete disgrace and a threat to our national security. I am honored to stand beside our National Guardsmen and women by introducing this legislation to protect them from President Biden’s forever pandemic."
According to Breitbart, 8,000 troops have already been separated for not taking the vaccine.
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