A.G. Gancarski
U.S. Sen. Rick Scott continued to blast vaccine mandates Tuesday, suggesting his adopted father would have gotten fired from his truck driving job if such a mandate were in place.
Scott made the comments during a press conference with leadership of the Republican caucus, where he blasted the impacts of inflation and the “bystanders” of the Joe Biden administration.
“My adopted father was a truck driver. He’d be in high demand today,” Scott said. “But what does the Biden Administration want to do? They want to say that he wouldn’t get to keep his job if he had any concern about taking the vaccine. So if he had any concern about taking the vaccine, he would lose his job.”
Scott’s adopted father, Orba Scott, passed away in 2006, and it is unknown whether the senior Scott would have harbored “concern about taking the vaccine,” so his use as an illustrative example ultimately is unclear.
However, the Senator’s feelings on vaccine mandates have been established and are very clear indeed, and Tuesday’s thoughts were consistent with a history of hot quotes on the subject.
Earlier in October, Sen. Scott castigated “Emperor Biden” for downplaying the impact of employees losing their jobs over not wanting to get vaccinated.
“The big story is Joe Biden is firing people. Joe Biden is telling people, ‘Hey, look, if you’re concerned about your health, I don’t care,’” Scott said during a cable hit on Oct. 8, offering a blanket defense of refusing the shot.
Last month, Scott joined other Republican Senators on the Prevent Unconstitutional Vaccine Mandates for Interstate Commerce Act.
“I got the COVID-19 vaccine and encourage everyone who feels comfortable to get it too, but government has no business pushing mandates on the American people and our hardworking businesses,” Scott said at the time.
Months of harsh rhetoric preceded that bill filing.
Particularly memorable was Scott’s argument this summer that federal door-to-door vaccination outreach programs are tantamount to intimidation and violations of the federal law restricting the release of medical information (HIPAA).
“Why should the government be pushing for people to put something into their bodies that they are not comfortable with? Everybody has access to the vaccine. It’s not like you don’t have access to the vaccine anywhere in the country.”
Scott has also taken issue with mask mandates, saying they should exempt vaccinated people.
“This is crazy. It makes no sense,” Scott said in July. “Democrats want to use fear to control us. If I got a vaccine — I did — why do I have to wear a mask?”
