President Joe Biden has "no authority" to enforce a COVID-19 vaccine mandate against members of the Texas National Guard, as the guard troops have not been federalized, Rep. Brian Babin, a former guardsman, said on Newsmax Wednesday.
"This is a national security risk because these vaccine mandates are horrible," said the Texas Republican on Newsmax's "National Report." "They're dictatorial; they're all about control."
Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott said Tuesday he is suing the Biden administration to block the Pentagon's vaccine mandate for the Texas National Guard, on claims that the federal order contradicts his own rules against punishing guardsmen who refuse a COVID-19 shot.
"I was a COVID case myself back in September," said Babin. "I'm fully vaccinated. It was a breakthrough case … as a healthcare provider myself, I was a dentist for 37 years, I can tell you vaccines are great. But they're not foolproof when it comes to COVID."
But, Babin said, "Do you lay off your military? Do you fire healthcare workers? Do you lay off half of your Border Patrol agents? This is a national security issue and the Biden administration's going into it with his eyes closed and it's a disgrace. It's going to hurt Americans."
Meanwhile, the surge of immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border is continuing and there is "no federal guidance" or common sense coming from the administration, said Babin.
"This is thanks to Joe Biden's lack of leadership and his incompetency, and the Democrat radical policies," said Babin. "We have had a tremendously bad year that is crisis after crisis, including the Biden border crisis."
More than 2 million migrants have entered the country over the past year, he added, and while there are vaccine mandates for American citizens, "We've got a up to 25% COVID rate coming in across the border," he continued. "You just can't make up this kind of stuff. It's so outrageous and it's kind of out of the Twilight Zone."
Babin said he appreciates the efforts of Texas' "strong Gov. Abbott" who is now rebuilding the border wall through state money.
"The federal government is not protecting us against an invasion," said Babin. "The cartels have been empowered. They're making billions of dollars and it's a disgrace and I don't see it improving. I think you're going to see a red election this coming November because people are tired of these crises from the Biden administration and the Democrats."
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Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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