Representative Matt Gaetz confronted Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in Congress over COVID-19 vaccine mandates in the military, criticizing Austin’s handling of personal medical issues while enforcing mandates on service members.
The Biden administration’s mandate, aimed at protecting military readiness and health, faced opposition for infringing on personal rights.
“You didn’t tell the president that you had cancer, that you were being treated for cancer, or that the treatment for that cancer had gone wrong because you saw it as personal and medical. And I think a lot of us have empathy for you in that regard,” Gaetz said.
“But now that you see how personal medical decisions are, will you call for the re-recruitment, restoration of full rank, and back pay for the 8,600 service members who were VAX mandated out of the military?”
“No, I won’t,” Austin said.
“Mr. Secretary, you come to us seeking forgiveness but you offer none and it seems as though the pattern is repeated. You make a mistake like on the Vax mandate and here regarding your notification then you get busted,” Gaetz said.
“President Biden had to sign something into law reversing your VAX mandate. You got busted here, not because you came forward, but because we learned of this through other means. And then after you get busted making a mistake, you want that benefit, but you don’t want to extend it to others,” he said.
The NDAA for Fiscal Year 2022 led to the reversal of the mandate amid debates on individual autonomy versus collective safety.
