MS Republicans struggle with COVID-19 vaccine mandates. What’s the right thing to say?
On a recent Saturday afternoon at a Jackson rally protesting vaccine mandates, Mississippi State Rep. Steve Hopkins, R-Southhaven, stood shouting about personal liberty.
His voice strained and finger wagging, it would be difficult to imagine Hopkins, a leading voice of the Mississippi Freedom Caucus, a far-right bloc of the statehouse, would have advocated for anything but personal vaccine choice for employees across the state.
But his position, like that of many conservative elected officials along the MS Gulf Coast, has wavered after recent Biden-administration orders that all federal contractor employees be vaccinated by Dec. 8, 2021.
The president’s guidance has presented a complicated crossroad for the state’s Republican lawmakers as it strikes a distinct divide between two of the leading tenants of conservatism: personal freedom and business.
“Believe it or not, I kind of started off the other way, where I thought, this is tough, I don’t want to tell businesses how to run their business,” Hopkins said in an interview with the Sun Herald. “I came to the conclusion that the civil liberties of the people are more important because that’s actually who we are as a government. We the people.”
In one of the nation’s most conservative-leaning states, Republican lawmakers have struggled with how to approach the vaccine mandate issue as the shots have become increasingly politicized and COVID has ravaged their constituencies.
While a growing movement of anti-vaccine and mandate support has surfaced along the Mississippi Coast, the area’s own elected officials like U.S. Rep Steve Palazzo, state Sens. Jeremy England and Joel Carter have carefully avoided speaking publicly while vocal lawmakers like Hopkins and state Sen. Chris McDaniel from outside districts have leaned into the partisan battle.
Lawmakers aggressive on vaccine mandates
Mississippi Coast residents against vaccine mandates have found their largest legislative champion in State Sen. Chris McDaniel, R-Ellisville. Last week, the senator excited over 400 Ingalls and other Coast employees at the Hilton Garden Inn in Pascagoula over the hot-button issue.
“It’s just so infuriating, I never thought I would see the day where any president, much less any federal government, would try to tell you what you must put in your body. That is the most anti-American approach I’ve ever seen in my life,” McDaniel, who represents Jones County a little north of Hattiesburg, said.
At Ingalls, one of the nation’s largest Navy and Coast Guard shipbuilders, a spokesperson told the Sun Herald that under 50% of its 11,500 employees have been vaccinated against COVID, making the majority of its workforce subject to termination by the vaccination deadline on Dec. 8. A number of unvaccinated told the Sun Herald they would get fired rather than take a vaccine, and hundreds more have agreed on a popular Facebook page called Gulf Coast Against Mandates, which includes over 10,800 members.
Some other federal contractors on the Coast, such as the John C. Stennis Space Center, are also subject to the Dec. 8 vaccination deadline. Biden administration guidance has previously stated that all employers of over 100 would also need to mandate shots, though a deadline has not yet been set for that benchmark.
McDaniel offered a few patchy solutions for the Coast employees to push back against mandates on Thursday, suggesting that filing federal lawsuits is one way to resist. But his presentation left some still confused on the issue.
“I think he answered a lot of questions, but I think it’s still up to people with a lot of questions of why can’t it be stopped instead of what are our options since it can’t be stopped?” said Lucedale resident Emily Read, an attendee of the Thursday rally because her father has worked at Ingalls for 30 years.
Another way to combat mandates would be if the state of Mississippi could pass a law blocking them, McDaniel suggested.
But the deadline for vaccinations at Ingalls would be Dec. 8, ahead of the 2022 Legislative session’s start in January, making any legislation untimely unless a special session was convened. The probability of a special session coming together by Gov. Tate Reeves’ orders is probable in coming weeks, but not to address the vaccine mandate issue. Medical marijuana is expected to absorb the bulk of an early session.
State Sen. Joel Carter, R-Gulfport, said he’s been in talks with the governor’s office and has heard little about the issue. He said they’ve addressed mostly the medical marijuana legislation.
McDaniel acknowledged the low probability of a special session addressing vaccine mandates, along with additional problems his proposed solutions could surface, such as the reality of an unsuccessful litigation strategy.
“Now I do concede there will be some difficulties, no question. But that doesn’t mean that we just stand down and allow Joe Biden to do whatever he wishes with these American workers in Mississippi.You will never hear me say this is going to be painless,” McDaniel said. “If we embark on this course of action it’s going to be a pain. Some of you will have to suffer.”
“Freedom isn’t free!” a woman shouted from the audience.
Another way to push back against mandates, McDaniel said, is to use religious exemptions. Ingalls’ deadline for employees to submit their religious exemptions was Oct. 13, however. A number of employees did not yet file.
“I did not file for a religious exemption. After a lot of thought I decided that I would not do a religious exemption. I believe that my personal beliefs and religion are none of my employer’s business. I will not jump through hoops for a company that will not stand behind their workers. I would rather lose my job and then give up my freedoms,” said Nolan Mann, one of the head organizers of a recent, 1,000 plus person rally against vaccine mandates in Pascagoula.
McDaniel suggested that employees still submit exemptions, to not “worry about the deadlines.”
Hopkins has also extended help to Ingalls employees. He’s recently offered legal help to Ingalls employees, posting on the Gulf Coast Against Mandates Facebook group that he has a lawyer friend who has offered to help Mississippians pro-bono on the issue.
He recommended that Coast employees call their employers “bluff” on the issue and “make them fire” individuals who refuse the vaccine.
“If you’re that dead set on standing up for your civil liberties then take it the whole way and make them fire you,” he said in an interview with the Sun Herald.
MS Coastal delegation more careful on the issue
Gulf Coast State Sens. Carter and Jeremy England, R-Vancleave were more cautious in their suggestions to the workforce on the issue.
“I mean, people have got to put food on the table. I mean, I think it’s kind of silly just to quit your job,” Carter said.
England said he hopes Coast employees look at the long-term consequences of leaving a job before they make any decisions.
“If (employees) are going to walk away from their job and refuse a mandate ... if they’re gonna stand up to do that, look, that’s brave,” he said. “I just hope that everybody’s looking at it from a longer, long-term view.”
Carter said the probability of a state lawmaker making real change on the issue was low, so he hasn’t spoken loudly on the issue.
“I mean, I could see a U.S senator doing it. But not a state senator, I mean, the state of Mississippi, we can’t. I’m not aware of anything that we could do to fight on Biden’s executive order on these mandates,” Carter said.
Carter said he’s against all mandates, but encourages everyone to consult their doctors and get their vaccines. The senator got his second shot last week, and said he’s had minimal side effects so far. He’s struggled with the issue because he doesn’t want to interfere with a business’ ability to operate.
“My whole perspective around it is that the unvaccinated are the ones that are dying, the vaccinated are not. If you’re vaccinated, I mean, you’re safe, your chances of catching COVID and dying are less than 1%,” he said. “But it is tough, it is a tough decision. And I mean, these employers, they have a right to run their businesses, how they feel, how they see fit.”
First-term Sen. England said the issue is one of the most challenging he’s faced, and it follows last year’s contentious debate to change the state flag. But he’s faced some scrutiny from constituents over his careful handling of the issue.
“Someone please tell Senator Jeremy England that his concern about losing 11,500 jobs pales in comparison to the loss of freedom from federal government overreach. Also, if the state of Mississippi can’t assist those people in finding other work, and stand behind its citizens, that’s a very sad state indeed. ” wrote Facebook user Vince Bosarge of the Gulf Coast Against Mandates Facebook group.
The lawmaker commented back on the post, which on Monday had 186 likes and over 71 comments, mostly expressing the same attitudes. England explained urged Bosarge to blame the federal government, the body that is requiring businesses to enforce mandates, and therefore posing the question of business versus personal liberty in the first place.
“I agree with you completely about this mandate putting HII and employees of HII in a tough spot,” England commented back.
“And believe me, I get the anger and the frustration, but we need to make sure that we don’t cause a bigger problem with an ill-conceived “solution.” We also need to make sure to remember who caused this issue when the next presidential election rolls around.”
England has said he doesn’t think it’s unconstitutional for the federal government to refuse to enter into contracts with vendors and manufacturers unless the employees are vaccinated.
“I don’t support the mandate from the Biden administration, but that said you know we have to keep in mind that these are employees that are working on federally contracted jobs and so that is where I think the issue becomes a little more tricky,” England said.
One of the only other voices advocating against vaccine mandates is Carl Boyanton, a Republican running for U.S. Rep. Steve Palazzo’s U.S. Senate seat in 2022. Boyanton was the only politician who attended the Ingalls rally. Palazzo, who represents Mississippi’s Fourth Congressional District which encompasses Ingalls, has not yet spoken on this specific issue.
“Palazzo is a typical politician, they’re afraid to come out with a statement because they’re afraid they’re gonna alienate somebody which, you know, of course, no matter what you write, you’re gonna alienate somebody,” Boyanton said.
At the Thursday rally in Pascagoula, an audience member asked McDaniel if Palazzo was for or against the mandates.
“I think his legal team is telling him that government action would be struck down in federal court. What they should be telling him is … just stand up and fight and we’ll figure all that stuff out later,” McDaniel said.
This article is supported by the Journalism and Public Information Fund, a fund of the Gulf Coast Community Foundation.
This story was originally published October 23, 2021 at 7:00 AM.
