After the U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle ruled against the current mask mandate enforced on public transportation and airplanes, it didn’t take long for the Biden administration to push back on the decision. Although the Judge claimed that the mandate was “unlawful”, the current administration is already preparing to appeal. 

Releasing a statement about the ruling, the Department of Justice and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wrote that “they disagree with the district court’s decision and will appeal, subject to CDC’s conclusion that the order remains necessary for public health. The Department continues to believe that the order requiring masking in the transportation corridor is a valid exercise of the authority Congress has given CDC to protect the public health. That is an important authority the Department will continue to work to preserve.” 

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They added, “On April 13, 2022, before the district court’s decision, CDC explained that the order would remain in effect while it assessed current public health conditions, and that the Transportation Security Administration would extend its directive implementing the order until May 3 to facilitate CDC’s assessment. If CDC concludes that a mandatory order remains necessary for the public’s health after that assessment, the Department of Justice will appeal the district court’s decision.”

As for Judge Mizelle, she stated that the mandate “exceeded the CDC’s statutory authority, improperly invoked the good cause exception to notice and comment rulemaking, and failed to adequately explain its decisions.”

At the time of the hearing, Mizelle ordered, “The Court DECLARES UNLAWFUL and VACATES the Mask Mandate, remanding it to the CDC for further proceedings consistent with this order. The Court directs the Clerk to TERMINATE President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., as a Defendant to this action, to ENTER final judgment in favor of Plaintiffs as prescribed in this order, and to CLOSE this case.”

Users online were amused by the notion of the Biden administration appealing the decision. One person wrote, “Yes. Keep fighting against the policy that had an entire plane cheer when repealed. Makes us stronger. It took the airlines half hour to rescind the rule. I’ve seen fired people have longer before having access revoked.”

This piece was written by Jeremy Porter on April 20, 2022. It originally appeared in DrewBerquist.com and is used by permission.

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