Following President Joe Biden’s announcement of a slew of vaccine mandates for private-sector employees, federal workers, federal contractors, and so on, many have decried the illegality of such mandates.

Whether these policies sink or swim will soon rest with our courts. It’s a blissful safeguard to have, but the emphasis on legal authority misses a serious threat. Let’s assume our Constitution speaks little to the government’s authority to limit freedoms in times of true national emergency and to lighten those restrictions for those deemed lesser risks.