7 Things: Brooks and Shelby seek to weaken Biden’s mandate, Alabama gubernatorial candidate calls questions about his beliefs ‘UnAmerican,’ Carl wants IRS reined in, and more …

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November 9, 2021

7. There’s apparently racism built into the roads

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg was recently asked by CNN White House correspondent April Ryan about the efforts of President Joe Biden and his administration to “deconstruct racism” that’s “built into the roadways.”
Buttigieg, who had said that there was “racism physically built into some of our highways,” explained at the press briefing that he’s “surprised” by the reaction he received. He explained, “[I]f a highway was built for the purpose of dividing a White and a Black neighborhood…that obviously reflects racism that went into those design choices.”

6. Critical Race Theory isn’t being taught, but teachers are going to keep teaching it

In Minnesota, Democrats have continued to claim that Critical Race Theory (CRT) isn’t being taught in schools. U.S. Representative Dean Phillips (D-MN) said he’s “saddened by the fact that we aren’t able to generate a narrative that is more truthful about what’s going on, because critical race theory is not taught in elementary schools or high schools. And it’s time we start articulating that better.”
In the very same state, there were about 100 teachers who signed on to “continue our commitment” to teaching CRT. There are also programs throughout the state that help educators teach about race. One union, Education Minnesota, has told teachers to not use the term “Critical Race Theory,” which they claim has been “redefined by the political right as an all-purpose racial dog whistle.”

5. White House won’t answer on families who willingly separated at the border

The Department of Justice has reportedly been preparing to pay illegal immigrants generous amounts of money if they were separated at the border from their families during President Donald Trump’s term, but White House deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre wouldn’t answer questions on the issue.
Jean-Pierre was asked about those only separated for a short time, and her response was that she’ll “direct you to the Department of Justice for any specifics on that.” When asked if the immigrants who were given a choice to be separated or deported with their children would be given payments, she gave a similar response. The Biden administration has dodged this issue by not giving clear answers on if illegal immigrants would receive payments and if so, in what amount.

4. Carl is working to limit the IRS

U.S. Representative Jerry Carl (R-Mobile) has offered an amendment to the so-called “Build Back Better Act” that would block some of the expansion of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that’s been attempted by the Democrats, specifically increasing armed agents who have “a track record of frequently mishandling and misusing their firearms.”
There are currently about 2,000 armed agents. Carl advised, “Democrats have rejected my attempts to prevent any further expansion of the IRS’s army of armed agents, but I will continue fighting this horrible abuse of power because it does nothing more than endanger the lives and property of Americans.”

3. Candidate for governor calls questions about his flat earth beliefs “UnAmerican”

As campaign season heats up, one candidate for governor has been questioned about his beliefs in multiple conspiracy theories. Pastor Dean Odle was not happy about the questions and hung up the phone during the middle of a radio interview.
On Monday, Odle discussed his beliefs about the earth being flat, the New World Order’s control of the world, NASA faking the moon landing and hiding the fact that the earth is flat, Pizzagate, QAnon and more. In response to these questions, Odle hung up on the interview and declared the questions were a form of religious bigotry in a campaign blog post titled, “The UnAmerican Attack on My Religious Beliefs.”

2. Shelby is backing efforts against the vaccine mandate

U.S. Senator Richard Shelby’s (R-AL) position on President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate had been called into question by some, but Alabama’s senior senator recently joined U.S. Senator Mike Braun (R-IN) in challenging the mandate.
Shelby said that he joined Braun last week and other “colleagues in officially challenging President Biden’s vaccine mandate under the Congressional Review Act. This mandate violates our constitutional liberties and is federal overreach at its finest.” Shelby went on to say that he may “urge people to consult with their doctor about getting vaccinated, but I believe our individual freedoms and rights are of the utmost importance.”

1. Brooks: Expand exemptions for the vaccine

In an effort to allow more people to make decisions in their health care, U.S. Representative Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville) is advocating for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to expand the exemptions allowed for the coronavirus vaccine. This would specifically relate to President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate.
Brooks said in his letter to the CDC that it’s “wrong for the government to insert itself into a personal healthcare decision.” He went on to add, “A growing number of Americans are having adverse side effects directly related to their receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. If an individual has an adverse reaction not related to an allergy, or a doctor recommends they do not receive the vaccine, the CDC should recognize these exemptions.”