On March 13, 2020, President Trump issued Proclamation 9994 – Declaring a National Emergency Concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak. On February 18, 2022, President Biden send notice to the Federal Register announcing the continuation of the national emergency declared in Proclamation 9994 of March 13, 2020. 

In his February 18^th letter to Speaker Pelosi informing her of the continuation of Proclamation 9994 beyond March 1, 2022, President Biden wrote, “There remains a need to continue this national emergency.  The COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause significant risk to the public health and safety of the Nation.”   

Presently, twenty-five states, half the nation, no longer have any active COVID-19 related state of emergency proclamations. The Governors of these twenty-five states can see no further need for extra ordinary powers to manage the COVID-19 virus and variants. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) statistics support the position that the need for a state of emergency has expired.

According to the CDC, on January 15, 2022 there were 435,318 new cases of COVID-19 reported.  On February 21, 2022 there were 61,359 new cases – a 709% drop in five weeks!  Beyond this significant reduction in cases over the past five weeks, the most prevalent Omicron Variant has proven to be significantly less deadly than the original wave of virus, and the Delta Variant.  So why did President Biden, and governors like California’s Governor Newsom think it necessary to continue to operate under a state of emergency?

A state of emergency gives extra ordinary powers to a president.  Under a state of emergency, a president does not have to go through the time-consuming, and often cumbersome process of getting something passed in Congress. In many ways, a state of emergency allows a president to rule by decree. This is true for state governors also. 

To illustrate how much emergency power a president has, look no further than Executive Order 9066.  Under the protection of this Executive Order, President Roosevelt ordered all Japanese Americans living on the West Coast to be placed into internment camps during World War II.  Between 1942 and 1945, approximately 120,000 Japanese Americans and Japanese immigrants were arrested and jailed for being Japanese! The last internment camp closed in March 1946. It took thirty years for Executive Order 9066 to be officially repealed by President Ford in 1976.

February 19, 2022 was the 80^th Anniversary of the Japanese Relocation Order.  Hopefully this stain on America’s history will never be forgotten.  Yet the power found in presidential emergency powers still remain.

Under COVID-19 state of emergency powers, President Biden has attempted to require businesses with 100 employees or greater to become monitors of vaccine or testing status of all employees.  Already short-staffed, businesses would have faced significant fines for allowing workers to work if they had not been vaccinated, or produced proof of a negative COVID-19 test result within the last 7 days.  Thankfully the Supreme Court stepped in and blocked this particular presidential intrusion – for now. 

What has America witnessed and endured during COVID-19 state of emergency mandates?  It’s nothing to be proud of, that’s for sure.

• Non-essential businesses forced to shut down
• Unemployment benefits exceeding earnings – paying people more to stay home
  • Forcing businesses to compete with the U.S. government
• Prohibiting gatherings for worship while allowing widespread protests
• Vaccine mandates regardless of natural immunity
• In some cities and states, requiring employees to check vaccine cards for vaccine status of their customers
• Mask requirements even when the masks being worn were not effective
• Turning flight attendants into mask militants
• Lifting some mask mandates but still requiring that schoolchildren remain masked at all time
• Creating sharp division between the masked and unmasked
• Creating sharper division between the vaccinated and unvaccinated
• Cultivating fear and mistrust of government and each other
• Four, five, or more booster vaccine shots that usually begin to wane in 90 days

Most cities and states that are still enforcing these types of state of emergency rules have begun to loosen the requirements. But as long as the state of emergency remains active, these types of draconian measures can be quickly reinstated by the power vested in one mayor, governor, or the President of United States.

President Biden says, “There remains a need to continue this national emergency.  The COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause significant risk to the public health and safety of the Nation.”  The evidence suggests otherwise. So, what’s the real reasoning behind extending Proclamation 9994?  What does President Biden and his party stand to gain? 

• Mail-in ballots mailed unrequested – like pizza coupons        
• Zuckerberg ballot boxes
• Ballot harvesters
• Drive-thru voting
• 24-hour voting
• 60 days of early voting (60 days of opportunity to commit voter fraud)
• Inadequate ballot chain of custody
• Same day voter registration
• No proof of identification  
• No signature verification
• Retain the House and Senate in 2022 – no matter how