Abbott: Texas won't enforce Biden's federal vaccine mandate
AUSTIN, Texas - Governor Greg Abbott says Texas will not impose the Biden administration's COVID-19 vaccine mandate on members of the Texas National Guard.
Abbott sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on December 16 reaffirming this stance after Secretary Austin threatened to cut off the flow of federal dollars for unvaccinated guardsmen late last month.
In August, Abbott issued an executive order prohibiting the imposition of a COVID-19 vaccine mandate by any governmental entity in Texas. In early October, Abbott ordered Texas Adjutant General Tracy Norris not to punish any guardsmen in Texas for choosing not to receive the vaccine.
"As Governor of Texas, I am the commander-in-chief of this State’s militia," reads the letter. "In that capacity, on October 4, 2021, I ordered the Adjutant General of Texas to comply with my Executive Order GA-39. If unvaccinated guardsmen suffer any adverse consequences within the State of Texas, they will have only President Joe Biden and his Administration to blame. The State of Texas will not enforce this latest COVID-19 vaccine mandate against its guardsmen. If the federal government keeps threatening to defund the Texas National Guard, I will deploy every legal tool available to me as Governor in defense of these American heroes."
Read Governor Abbott's letter below:
December 16, 2021
The Honorable Lloyd J. Austin III
Secretary
U.S. Department of Defense
1000 Defense Pentagon
Washington, DC 20301-1000
Dear Secretary Austin:
As Governor of Texas, I am the commander-in-chief of this State’s militia. In that capacity, on October 4, 2021, I ordered the Adjutant General of Texas to comply with my Executive Order GA-39. My letter to Major General Tracy R. Norris read as follows:
As you know, I issued Executive Order GA-39, which commands that "[n]o governmental entity can compel any individual to receive a COVID-19 vaccine." That includes the Texas National Guard and Texas State Guard.
Under this order, General Norris will not punish any guardsman in Texas for choosing not to receive the vaccine.
If unvaccinated guardsmen suffer any adverse consequences within the State of Texas, they will have only President Biden and his Administration to blame. Your memorandum of November 30, 2021 threatens to cut off the flow of federal dollars for unvaccinated members of the National Guard who serve in a so-called "Title 32" status. The Secretary of the Air Force has gone even further, explicitly warning of discharge proceedings in a memorandum of December 7, 2021.
This willingness to hollow out the National Guard is unconscionable in the face of growing global threats and a border crisis created by the Biden Administration. It is also in tension with recent legal decisions. President Biden and his Administration have suffered a string of losses in the federal courts with their other illegal vaccine mandates. See BST Holdings, L.L.C. v. OSHA, 17 F.4th 604 (5th Cir. Nov. 12, 2021) (enjoining the OSHA mandate); Texas v. Becerra, No. 2:21-cv-229 (N.D. Tex. Dec. 15, 2021) (enjoining the CMS mandate); Georgia v. Biden, No. 1:21-cv-163 (S.D. Ga. Dec. 7, 2021) (enjoining the federal-contractor mandate).
The State of Texas will not enforce this latest COVID-19 vaccine mandate against its guardsmen. If the federal government keeps threatening to defund the Texas National Guard, I will deploy every legal tool available to me as Governor in defense of these American heroes.
Sincerely,
Greg Abbott
Governor
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