Senate Votes To Ban Mask Mandates On Airplanes, Transit

The U.S. Senate voted this week to ban federal mask mandates on airplanes and mass transit, a massive win for sanity and common sense.

An amendment to an appropriations bill was introduced by Sen. JD Vance which prohibits federal money from being used on mask mandates for flights, trains, buses and other “publicly funded transportation” for the next fiscal year.

What’s perhaps most surprising about the vote is that it was approved by a 59-38 margin after a number of Senate Democrats voted in favor.

Democrat Sens. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Jon Tester of Montana, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Michael Bennet of Colorado, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Tim Kaine of Virginia and Mark Kelly of Arizona voted in favor. 

Vance issued a statement after the vote saying it was a “massive victory for personal freedom.”

"We saw countless abuses of authority throughout the COVID pandemic, and the American people were justifiably enraged by unscientific mask mandates," he said.

Calling mask mandates “unscientific” may be the understatement of the century, but it is a massive step forward in acknowledging the pointless futility of mask mandates.

CULPEPER, VIRGINIA - FEBRUARY 10: U.S. President Joe Biden puts on his mask after speaking during an event at Germanna Community College February 10, 2022 in Culpeper. Virginia. During his remarks, Biden highlighted the work his administration has done on lowering health care costs and prescription drug prices. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Mask Mandate Vote Represents A Huge Win For Actual Science

Mask mandates indisputably failed everywhere they were tried throughout the pandemic. Countries like South Korea, Japan and Australia achieved essentially universal compliance with mandates and saw cases skyrocket regardless.

South Korea in particular now ranks as one of the most heavily infected countries throughout the pandemic despite extremely high masking rates and strict enforcement.

Masks on planes were also a spectacular failure; when a judge overturned the federal mask mandate in 2022, many politicians, health “experts,” and media commentators ranted endlessly that the decision would lead to a surge of infections nationally and a rash of cancelled flights.

Except, of course, reality showed the exact opposite. Cases declined nationally afterwards, and airlines actually had fewer than normal cancellations in the ensuing weeks.

Masks were completely ineffective no matter where they were tried or in what context. Which was predicted by pre-pandemic planning documents and confirmed by multiple studies during the pandemic.

READ: NEW STUDY CONFIRMS THAT MASKS LIKELY DON’T WORK TO STOP COVID

The ban means travelers can rest assured, at least for this fiscal year, that the Biden administration won’t try to force them back into masks ahead of a potential winter increase.

While it’s not the admission of defeat and apology from the “experts” and politicians who forced ineffective policies on Americans for multiple years, it’s a start. Hopefully the start of a permanent ban.