Republicans slammed President Joe Biden this week for hypocritically declaring that there is “no federal solution” to the coronavirus pandemic just months after he attacked GOP governors for trying to lead their own COVID responses.
In a call with governors this week, Biden told them the pandemic has to be “solved at the state level.”
“Look, there is no federal solution,” he said, urging the governors to come up with their own strategies and vowing to provide federal assistance as much as he can.
However, back in August, Biden was sending a very different message.
He specifically took aim at Florida and Texas officials for relaxing COVID restrictions, saying, “Please help, but you aren’t going to help at least get out of the way,” he said at the time. “The people are trying to do the right thing. Use your power to save lives.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, slammed Biden’s flip-flop on Twitter:
Biden says there’s no federal solution to COVID and that this gets solved at a state level.
He should immediately end his unconstitutional federal mandates.
The Texas solution is no mandates and personal responsibility. https://t.co/lPlfsy7ioY
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) December 27, 2021
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., also blasted Biden for trying to force federal vaccine mandates down the states’ throats even as he declares that there is “no federal solution.”
When Joe Biden says “there is no federal solution,” he’s trying to avoid blame for his incompetence.
If he really believes this, he should rescind his unconstitutional federal mandates.
— Tom Cotton (@TomCottonAR) December 27, 2021
In addition to the flip-flop over his failed policies, some noted that Biden’s presidential campaign hinged largely on his promise to perform better than his predecessor, former President Donald Trump, by assuming more direct command of pandemic policymaking.
Biden’s chief of staff also was skewered for a series of tweets he issued last year, prior to assuming the influential post, in which he directly attacked Trump’s decision to delegate COVID policy to each individual state.
I’ve been saying since March that we can’t beat COVID with an “Articles of Confederation” response. We have a national government for a reason. If Donald Trump won’t use it to beat this killer disease, I know someone who will, starting on 1/20/21. https://t.co/8yb3vTa8na
— Ronald Klain (@RonaldKlain) June 24, 2020
