A congressman who is suing Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-California) over recently reinstated rules on masking on the floor of the House of Representatives has contracted COVID-19.
Rep. Ralph Norman (R-South Carolina), who received a $500 fine in May for refusing to wear a facial covering on the House floor, alleges that masking rules in Congress were unnecessary and unconstitutional. Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia) and Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) are co-plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
“The masking requirement was an attempt to prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, medicine, and science, despite a deep divide over these issues of opinion,” according to the lawmakers’ suit, adding that the masking rules were used by Pelosi and Democrats to force Republicans “to be instruments for fostering public adherence to this ideological point of view that Plaintiffs find unacceptable.”
On Thursday, Norman announced on social media that he had developed a breakthrough case of the virus, in spite of being vaccinated against COVID-19.
“After experiencing minor symptoms this morning, I sought a covid-19 test and was just informed the test results were positive. Thankfully, I have been fully vaccinated and my symptoms remain mild,” Norman wrote on Twitter.
One of the best ways to prevent the spreading of coronavirus is by getting vaccinated. But breakthrough cases can occur. When they do, they typically are less severe than cases in patients who have not been vaccinated.
New research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has indicated that vaccinated people are still able to spread coronavirus if they get a breakthrough infection. However, a person who is vaccinated is less likely to contract COVID-19 in the first place. Masks remain a proactive means to prevent the spread of the virus and its variants.
Preventing the spread of coronavirus will require vaccinating a large portion of any given population, many health experts have long held.
Nearly half of Republicans in the House have refused to disclose if they’re vaccinated or not.
Late last month, Pelosi, responding to advice from The Office of the Attending Physician, reinstated mask rules for the House, angering many Republicans who claimed they were unnecessary. Pelosi also reinstated the penalties for those that don’t follow the new rules.
The Speaker justified the reinstatement of the rules because Republicans weren’t doing their part to stop the spread of the virus.
“The Republican party has been delinquent in embracing the science that people need to be vaccinated,” Pelosi said in a statement. “That’s why when we talk about the masking policy in the House, we always just follow the guidance of the Capitol physician.”
Norman’s situation — a lawmaker getting sick in spite of having been vaccinated — is perhaps indicative of why Congress still needs rules on masking, to add another layer of protection against the spread of coronavirus within its halls.
Help us Prepare for Trump’s Day One
Trump is busy getting ready for Day One of his presidency – but so is Truthout.
Trump has made it no secret that he is planning a demolition-style attack on both specific communities and democracy as a whole, beginning on his first day in office. With over 25 executive orders and directives queued up for January 20, he’s promised to “launch the largest deportation program in American history,” roll back anti-discrimination protections for transgender students, and implement a “drill, drill, drill” approach to ramp up oil and gas extraction.
Organizations like Truthout are also being threatened by legislation like HR 9495, the “nonprofit killer bill” that would allow the Treasury Secretary to declare any nonprofit a “terrorist-supporting organization” and strip its tax-exempt status without due process. Progressive media like Truthout that has courageously focused on reporting on Israel’s genocide in Gaza are in the bill’s crosshairs.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to look at hard realities and communicate them to you. We hope that you, like us, can use this information to prepare for what’s to come.
And if you feel uncertain about what to do in the face of a second Trump administration, we invite you to be an indispensable part of Truthout’s preparations.
In addition to covering the widespread onslaught of draconian policy, we’re shoring up our resources for what might come next for progressive media: bad-faith lawsuits from far-right ghouls, legislation that seeks to strip us of our ability to receive tax-deductible donations, and further throttling of our reach on social media platforms owned by Trump’s sycophants.
We’re preparing right now for Trump’s Day One: building a brave coalition of movement media; reaching out to the activists, academics, and thinkers we trust to shine a light on the inner workings of authoritarianism; and planning to use journalism as a tool to equip movements to protect the people, lands, and principles most vulnerable to Trump’s destruction.
We urgently need your help to prepare. As you know, our December fundraiser is our most important of the year and will determine the scale of work we’ll be able to do in 2025. We’ve set two goals: to raise $104,000 in one-time donations and to add 1340 new monthly donors by midnight on December 31.
Today, we’re asking all of our readers to start a monthly donation or make a one-time donation – as a commitment to stand with us on day one of Trump’s presidency, and every day after that, as we produce journalism that combats authoritarianism, censorship, injustice, and misinformation. You’re an essential part of our future – please join the movement by making a tax-deductible donation today.
If you have the means to make a substantial gift, please dig deep during this critical time!
With gratitude and resolve,
Maya, Negin, Saima, and Ziggy