Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

White House Defends US Vaccine Mandate Against Court Challenge

White House Defends US Vaccine Mandate Against Court Challenge

The US vaccine mandate is designed to push millions of workers at businesses with more than 100 employees into getting Covid-19 shots or submit to weekly testing.

US President Joe Biden's administration on Sunday issued a vocal defense of a controversial Covid-19 vaccine mandate for large companies despite a court challenge that temporarily freezes the program.

"The president and the administration wouldn't have put these requirements in place if they didn't think they were appropriate and necessary," Surgeon General Vivek Murthy said on ABC talk show "This Week."

"The administration is certainly prepared to defend them."

And White House chief of staff Ron Klain, citing earlier court rulings that upheld state-level mandates, said he was "quite confident" that the mandate would ultimately be upheld.

"It's common sense," he told NBC's "Meet the Press."

The federal mandate, designed to push millions of workers at businesses with more than 100 employees into getting Covid-19 shots -- or submit to weekly testing -- is key to administration efforts to bring the coronavirus pandemic under control.

But on Saturday, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit said several petitioners opposing the mandate had raised "grave statutory and constitutional issues." It granted a temporary stay.

Petitioners -- including five conservative US states as well as several private employers and religious groups -- have questioned the federal government's authority to issue such a nationwide order.

Murthy, in defending it, cited a long history of such requirements -- going back to George Washington requiring his troops to be inoculated against smallpox -- and said that with the country still seeing 75,000 Covid cases a day, "it's important to take every measure possible to make our workplaces safer."

And with the new mandate not set to take effect until January, Klain expressed confidence courts would by then uphold it.

The traditionally conservative Fifth Circuit court, based in New Orleans, Louisiana, ordered the government to reply to petitioners' motion for a permanent injunction by Monday evening.

Senior Biden advisor Cedric Richmond said he was "absolutely" convinced the new rule would survive judicial scrutiny.

"We're very confident we're on statutory and legal grounds," he told CBS. "This is about keeping Americans safe."

Should the suspension be upheld it would represent a major setback to one of Biden's most far-reaching efforts to secure the immunization of American workers, amid predictions of a Covid-19 winter resurgence.

Around 58 percent of the total US population was fully vaccinated as of early November, up from half in August as state, local and company mandates were announced.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
×