Biden Proclaims ‘Simple’ Rule: ‘Get Vaccinated or Wear a Mask Until You Do’

Speaking from the Rose Garden today at the White House, President Joe Biden celebrated the new guidelines issued by the CDC lifting mask requirements for people who are fully vaccinated, crediting his administration’s vaccination program with dramatically reducing the impact of the coronavirus.

Biden declared, “The rule is very simple: get vaccinated or wear a mask until you do. The choice is yours,” later tweeting out these words as well.

“You all made this possible. Now let’s finish the work of beating this virus and getting everything back to normal,” Biden added.

Under Biden’s tweet, there was pushback from many including Bloomberg reporter Dana Hull, who said, “Really hard for parents who have kids under 12 to square this.”

Really hard for parents who have kids under 12 to square this

— Dana "Fully Vaccinated and Relieved" Hull 👩🏻‍💻 (@danahull) May 13, 2021

Twitter user “Mace” asked, “But Joe what if I lie and don’t have the vaccine and walk out without a mask?”

But Joe what if I lie and don't have the vaccine and walk out without a mask?

— ☥ Mace (@macexmets) May 13, 2021

A progressive Twitter user responded, “But Joe, they’re not going to get vaccinated and now they’ll refuse to wear masks everywhere.”

But Joe, they're not going to get vaccinated and now they'll refuse to wear masks everywhere.

— Definitely not Deidre (@d_veebee) May 13, 2021

From NBC News:

Biden also stressed that some Americans might not yet feel comfortable taking their masks off and urged people to “treat them with kindness and respect.”

As the CDC announced the new rule, the atmosphere at the White House began to instantly change.

Biden walked back into the White House following his speech without wearing a mask, and aides who had diligently worn N95s since the start of the administration in an effort to model good public health behavior began shedding them.

Earlier Thursday Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and a group of senators also met in the Oval Office without wearing masks, and first lady Jill Biden, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and actress Jennifer Garner took their masks off during a trip to a high school in West Virginia following the announcement.

White House staffers were also sent an email announcing that, effective immediately, anyone working on the White House complex who is fully vaccinated is no longer required to wear a mask.