Gov. Doug Ducey calls BS on himself over COVID-19 vaccine mandates

Gov. Doug Ducey wants to have it both ways.

He wants to seem like a reasonable, responsible elected Republican, while at the same time appeasing the completely unreasonable, totally irresponsible members of the Republican party.

In the process, Ducey says dumb stuff (or has his staff say dumb stuff for him) that can come back and bite the governor on the you-know-what.

For example, back in July Ducey was asked by Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services why he opposed adding a requirement for the COVID-19 vaccination to the other vaccinations required of Arizona students. To attend school they must be immunized against things like measles, mumps and rubella.

Was it lack of FDA approval or not?

Ducey previously has spoken out strongly in support of those vaccine requirements.

However, Ducey press aide Karamargin told Fischer, “Those vaccines are part of a schedule of vaccines that have gone through the full FDA approval process. The COVID vaccines have not.”

OK, but now the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine does have full approval.

So Ducey now would be in favor of instituting a vaccine mandate for Arizona school students, right?

Wrong.

Karamargin told KJZZ that Ducey still opposes requiring students to get the shots.

He noted that the Arizona Legislature has approved a ban on any COVID-19 vaccine mandate at public universities and other schools.

The thing is, however, Ducey signed that bill. It was tucked into the state budget (a fact that may get it tossed in the courts).

Ducey could call a special session

And Ducey knew when he went along with lawmakers that full approval of the vaccine by the FDA was only a matter of time. He could have told the Republicans who control the Legislature that he wouldn’t sign such a bill until the FDA announced whether the vaccine would be fully approved or not.

He didn’t.

And now that it is fully approved he could call a special session to have the Legislature rescind the law preventing a vaccine mandate.

But he won’t.

His press flack now says the governor is firmly against a vaccine mandate for COVID-19, whether the vaccine is fully approved or not.

“The governor’s position is very clear,” Karamargin told KJZZ.

Really?

Appeasment is never a good political strategy

So why didn’t the governor just say so back in July, rather than having Karamargin spew a bunch of hooey about his hesitation having something to do with the vaccine not yet being fully approved by the FDA?

Actually, I think we know the answer.

It’s because Ducey wants to have it both ways.

He wants to seem like a reasonable, responsible elected Republican, while at the same time appeasing the completely unreasonable, totally irresponsible members of the Republican party.

Which doesn’t seem like a particularly winning strategy for a person with future political ambitions.

I suspect that reasonable Republicans will think Ducey is weak for kissing up to the party’s fringe. And that fringe Republicans will think him weak for kissing up to the party’s establishment.

And everyone else?

Well, they’ll just see his behavior for what it is.

Weak.

Reach Montini at [email protected].

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