Horry GOP wants McMaster to block vax mandates sooner, back ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ rule
The Horry County Republican Party, at a specially-called meeting Tuesday night, called on Gov. Henry McMaster and state lawmakers to take action in December to halt federal vaccine mandates ahead of a January deadline from the federal government.
And once South Carolina lawmakers begin their regular legislative session in January, Horry County Republicans voiced support for a bill that would institute a “don’t ask, don’t tell” rule for vaccines, which some lawmakers believe could be used to oppose federal vaccine requirements in the courts.
In a near-unanimous vote Tuesday night, Horry County GOP members passed a resolution calling on McMaster to put in place a state of emergency to halt federal vaccine requirements until lawmakers head back to Columbia in January. The idea, as pitched by county party leadership and state Rep. William Bailey (R-North Myrtle Beach) and backed by party members, would have McMaster declare a state of emergency for South Carolina regarding vaccine mandates throughout December, and lift it once lawmakers pass a bill to more formally limit federal mandates. Due to limits placed on McMaster’s emergency powers earlier in the pandemic, any state of emergency put in place by the governor would expire after 15 days and would have to be refreshed multiple times until the legislative session begins Jan. 7.
Some party members Tuesday also voiced support for a pre-filed bill from state Rep. David Hiott (R-Pickens) that would make asking a person about their vaccination status a form of discrimination.
Hiott’s legislation, which is co-sponsored by more than 40 other state lawmakers, would make a person’s COVID-19 vaccination status protected information and bar employers and other entities from asking a person if they’ve been vaccinated. Asking to see a person’s vaccine card is similarly barred by the bill.
Bailey on Tuesday said he felt that such a measure could pass the legislature and could provide fodder for a challenge to federal vaccine mandates. He described it as a “don’t ask, don’t tell” measure.
Hiott’s bill is one of nearly a dozen pieces of legislation filed ahead of lawmakers’ 2022 session aimed at preventing vaccine requirements and other COVID-19-related restrictions. Another pre-filed piece of legislation would block vaccine requirements for federal contractors.
The move by the local Republicans comes as President Joe Biden’s administration is moving to enforce COVID-19 vaccine requirements for millions of American workers. One rule would require vaccines or weekly tests for all employees of companies with 100 or more workers, while another would require vaccines or weekly tests for all employees of hospitals, nursing homes and healthcare companies that participate in Medicare and Medicaid programs. The administration has set a Jan. 4 deadline for employees to be fully vaccinated or agree to weekly tests.
Will McMaster issue an emergency declaration?
Brian Symmes, a spokesperson for McMaster, said Wednesday that the governor has been working to oppose federal vaccine mandates, though he didn’t respond to questions about whether or not McMaster would consider a state of emergency in December.
“Governor McMaster has been out front, challenging President Biden’s illegal vaccine mandates every step of the way,” Symmes said in a statement.
Symmes also noted that South Carolina has been part of legal challenges against the Biden administration to nullify any vaccine mandates, and that the governor in early November barred state agencies from enforcing any mandates. To date, federal judges in Louisiana, Missouri and Kentucky have blocked the administration’s mandates, though the administration is still appealing the cases.
“Two of the three major mandates have already been ruled unconstitutional by the courts and the governor won’t stop until they’ve all been thrown out,” Symmes said.
The Horry GOP’s stand against vaccine requirements on Tuesday is the latest opposition the local party has taken to COVID-19 rules and treatments. In September, the party met to cast skepticism on COVID-19 vaccines and promote alternative treatments like ivermectin, though medical professionals have warned against the use of the drug as a coronavirus treatment.
At Tuesday’s meeting, held at the Journey Church in the Inlet Square Mall, Horry GOP leaders cast their opposition to vaccine mandates as a fight for “bodily autonomy” and as a fight against an over-reaching federal government.
“I’ve heard from people that sit behind a desk at their house that are being required to vaccinate. It’s just a power struggle, it’s just power-grabbing at this point,” Tracy “Beanz” Diaz, the local party’s liaison to the state GOP, told members. “It’s a game of chicken we’re playing right now with the federal government. If we lose control over our own bodies, we’re screwed.”
Diaz also urged healthcare workers subject to vaccine mandates to resist getting inoculation shots if they didn’t want them.
“We need all the soldiers on the battlefield we can get. If you decide to just go ahead and get it because you don’t know what’s going to happen and you don’t want to lose your job and you’re scared, you become a casualty in this battle, and we don’t want casualties, we want strong soldiers,” Diaz said.
“You are literally fighting a war for every single person in this country right now if you are in this position,” she added.
Party leaders on Tuesday also said they were working to organize mass transportation to a Saturday rally in Columbia where protesters plan to call on state lawmakers to come back to work early to enact bans against vaccine mandates. Because lawmakers in June didn’t include vaccine mandates as a possible discussion topic for their off-season, doing so would require two-thirds majority votes in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Bailey said its unlikely that lawmakers could reach that threshold.
Still, Bailey said, if lawmakers, state officials and the public can “kick the can down the road” until January, lawmakers will have an opportunity to “get this truly resolved.” Even if large employers and healthcare entities choose to follow the federal mandates, Bailey noted, a “don’t ask, don’t tell” style law in South Carolina could set up a lawsuit that the mandates shouldn’t apply in South Carolina.
“I think once you get to the point where they’re violating a discriminatory process, someone is going to have a good lawsuit on their hands, because you can’t ask that question,” Bailey said. “I think we can probably get the votes. It’ll be close but I think we can get it.”
This story was originally published December 1, 2021 at 3:08 PM with the headline "Horry GOP wants McMaster to block vax mandates sooner, back ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ rule."
