The White House said public health measures should be guided by science, data, and experts after a federal judge’s ruling led to trains, planes, and buses going mask-optional overnight.
The Department of Justice is still reviewing the decision and may appeal, according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
WHITE HOUSE PANS ‘DISAPPOINTING’ COURT RULING AGAINST FEDERAL MASK MANDATE
“We’ve said from the start that our course of response should be guided by the science and data, and by experts,” said Psaki. “When we made this announcement, the CDC said it needed 15 days to assess the impacts of an uptick in cases on hospitalizations, deaths, and hospital capacity. We still feel that is entirely reasonable.”
The federal mask mandate for public transportation and transportation hubs was vacated Monday by U.S. District Judge Kathryn Mizelle in Tampa, eliminating the requirement, at least temporarily, for travelers across the country.
The mandate had recently been extended to May by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But following the ruling, a Biden administration official said Monday evening that the Transportation Security Administration would not enforce the mandate while federal agencies reviewed the decision and weighed next steps.
“CDC recommends that people continue to wear masks in indoor public transportation settings,” the official said.
President Joe Biden is traveling to New Hampshire to make a speech on infrastructure today, and aides and media members traveling with him were required to wear masks aboard Air Force One.
“The CDC continues to advise and recommend masks on airplanes,” Psaki said. “We are abiding by the CDC recommendations, and the president is. We would advise all Americans to do that.”
After the plane landed, Biden made his own statements to the press that did not seem to gel with those of his press secretary.
Asked if Americans should be wearing masks, Biden replied that it’s “up to them.” When Biden was asked about whether the Justice Department should appeal the court ruling, the president responded that he hadn’t “spoken to the CDC.”
For now, Americans will decide on an individual basis if they want to follow the CDC’s mask-wearing advice or not. Psaki lamented to reporters that the decision was made by a federal judge rather than public health authorities.
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“Public health decisions shouldn’t be made by the courts,” said Psaki. “They should be made by public health experts.”
