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White House press secretary Jen Psaki slammed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Tuesday for cracking down on mask mandates in his state, saying he and other governors should “get out of the way” by public health.
During her daily press briefing, Psaki was asked to address Florida and the many other states that have defied the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s new guidelines that recommend universal masking in schools.
PSAKI ATTACK DESANTIS IN FLORIDA, THE GOVERNOR’S OFFICE RETURNS: “PSAKI IS THE ONE WHO PLAYING POLITICS”
DeSantis signed an executive order last week that allows parents to ignore mask warrants in schools. His order came as the delta variant of the coronavirus is causing a new wave of infections and hospitalizations in his condition.
Psaki continued his criticism of DeSantis’ handling of the pandemic on Tuesday while noting that “most Republican governors are doing exactly the right thing” and are following the CDC.
“But if you’re not going to help, if you don’t follow public health guidelines, then step aside and let people do whatever it takes to lead in their communities, whether they are teachers. , university leaders, or leaders in the private sector or others who are trying to save lives, “she said.
DeSantis press secretary Christina Pushaw told Fox News in an email that Psaki’s comments were “not very professional.”
“She may want to revise the Constitution and learn more about the role of a state governor,” Pushaw wrote, in part. “At the end of the day, freedom matters. Every day, nearly a thousand Americans move to Florida – most of them fleeing the ever-changing and conflicting COVID restrictions imposed by federal bureaucrats in locked states.”
“In contrast, Governor DeSantis keeps abreast of the latest research and makes decisions based on data,” she added. “If he had ‘stepped aside’ as Psaki suggested, and let the CDC run our state, many of those lives could have been lost – as we have seen with the tragic situation in New York City, in the United States. Michigan and Pennsylvania, where the age-adjusted death rates are significantly higher than in Florida. “
During his briefing Tuesday, Psaki also briefly criticized Texas as having “the most extreme of these measures,” where Gov. Greg Abbott signed an executive order banning coronavirus vaccine mandates in the public sector and threatening with a $ 1,000 fine against offenders.
Psaki’s comments come a day after she accused Republican governors, particularly DeSantis of Florida, of choosing “politics” over “public health.”
“Twenty percent of the cases we see are in Florida,” she said in her briefing Monday.
“There are measures and precautions that can be taken,” she continued, “including encouraging people to get vaccinated, encouraging people to wear masks, including allowing schools to impose masks and allow children to wear masks, which is not the current state of affairs in Florida. ”
Psaki appeared to have partially distorted Florida policy – DeSantis made the wearing of masks optional for Florida students but did not prohibit students from wearing masks.
“So, you know, at some point, leaders are going to have to choose whether they are going to follow the public health guidelines or if they are going to follow the policy,” she added.
DeSantis’ office hit back at Psaki on Monday afternoon, pointing out that the state allows parents to decide whether their children will wear masks or not, and noting that the governor has held more than 50 vaccine-specific events urging Floridians to to get vaccinated.
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“Contemptuously ignoring Governor DeSantis’ efforts to protect vulnerable Floridians, Psaki is the one playing politics with the pandemic,” Pushaw told Fox News.
DeSantis, a declared opponent of coronavirus restrictions like state-level mask warrants, has been repeatedly touted as a potential challenger to President Biden in 2024.
Fox News’ Peter Hasson contributed reporting
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