Prominent Democrats Join Republicans in Opposition to COVID-19 Lockdowns
AllSides Summary
After nearly two years of partisan divides over COVID-19 lockdowns, some Democrats are now pushing to avoid lockdowns even as COVID-19 cases in the U.S. reach new highs.
In Chicago, Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) is in a stand-off with the city's teachers' union; Lightfoot says in-person classes should resume for Chicago schools, but the union disagrees. In New York, Democratic leaders have also pushed for schools to remain open despite surging COVID-19 cases. In Colorado, Democratic Gov. Jared Polis last month declared that vaccines mean "the end of the medical emergency." In California, Democratic leaders say the Super Bowl will continue without attendance restrictions in Los Angeles next month. In North Carolina, Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper says we "have to learn how to live with it, and continue to keep our kids in school and our businesses open." Many Democrats continue to encourage vaccination, but few are returning to lockdown measures.
Outlets across the spectrum often attributed the change in tune to evolving science and official guidance about COVID-19 and Democrats' desire to win over COVID-weary voters in the 2022 midterm elections. Many reports mentioned how people are worn out by COVID-19's impact on their lives; public opinion data that suggests people are less worried about the Omicron variant; and concerns that the public health benefits of lockdowns were outweighed by negative effects on the economy and mental health, particularly for children.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Right
Amid Omicron Wave, Some Democrats Change Tune On Mandates And Lockdowns
Democratic solidarity on COVID-19 policy is beginning to break.
President Joe Biden laid out his administration’s response to the Omicron variant last week as new cases surge in many parts of the country and some Americans panic about an uncertain future. But unlike during previous waves, more and more Democrats are saying no to new lockdowns and mandates to stop the spread.
New York has been one of the most restrictive states in the country at various points in the pandemic, but Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul appears to be drawing...
From the Left
Omicron is surging — and Democrats aren’t shutting things down this time
Democrats have a message for Omicron-flooded America: get vaxxed and carry on.
From New York to California, Democratic mayors and governors are fighting to keep schools and businesses open with an urgency they haven’t flexed before in the pandemic.
In Chicago, where a teachers union dispute has shuttered the nation’s third-largest school system, Mayor Lori Lightfoot blasted educators for not reporting to their classrooms — and got the tacit support of the White House.
“Enough is enough. We are standing firm,” Lightfoot told Chicago residents last week.
In California, Gov....
From the Left
In omicron outbreak, US governors lose appetite for mandates 
Governors took sweeping actions during earlier surges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many closed schools and ordered businesses shut down. They issued mask mandates, vaccine requirements and even quarantines in some places for people who had traveled to out-of-state hot spots.
Not this time, even as the exponential spread of the super-contagious omicron variant shatters COVID-19 infection records. While governors are sending help to hospitals, they are displaying little appetite for widespread public orders or shutdowns.
Even Democratic governors who passed strict mandates early on are now relying more on persuasion than...
AllSides Picks
March 28th, 2023
March 28th, 2023
March 27th, 2023
Discuss & Debate economy and jobs
Truth & Democracy, Session 3 of 3: Education
March 29 at 11am PT / 2pm ET Interactivity FoundationMore News about Coronavirus from the Left, Center and Right
From the Left
From the Center
From the Right
