Newsom throws political blame on New California vaccination campaign – NBC Bay Area

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Making a new push for vaccinations as coronavirus cases soar in California, Gov. Gavin Newsom has turned political in announcing new requirements for state officials and health care workers to show proof of vaccination, accusing right-wing politicians and the media perpetuate disinformation about the gunfire.

They misinform people, they literally put people’s lives in danger, Newsom said on MSNBC, echoing similar comments at a press conference and on CNN on Monday, where he specifically criticized Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene from Georgia and Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

Newsoms comments strayed from his steadfast statements throughout the COVID-19 crisis, in which he pushed aside questions about pandemic policy and often missed opportunities to criticize Republicans.

The new approach comes against the backdrop of a recall election in September to oust Newsom, fueled by anger over his response to the pandemic.

Newsom’s frustrations erupted when he announced that he would require state employees and millions of health workers, public and private, to show proof of vaccination or be regularly tested, a consistent policy to a growing number of cities run by Democrats.

After Newsom mentioned Greene several times, she responded by calling him a Communist dictator on Twitter. In his response, he accused her of literally killing Americans by spreading disinformation. Greene compared the vaccination and mask warrants to the Holocaust and was suspended from Twitter for 12 hours last week after spreading misinformation about vaccines. On Sunday night, she compared the decisions of business owners to exclude unvaccinated customers from segregation.

Monday’s announcement allows Newsom to take a clear step to boost the vaccination rate while avoiding imposing broader mandates and restrictions that could further frustrate voters. His political comments appeared intended to motivate his Democratic base by tying the recall to what he calls hardline Republicans.

In California, Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly 2 to 1, and one of Newsom’s strategies has been to nationalize the race.

Anything he can do to highlight who is behind it and who is attacking it is for his own political good, said Garry South, a Democratic strategist who worked for former Gov. Gray Davis, who was recalled in 2003.

Rob Stutzman, a Republican strategist who worked across the South during the 2003 recall, agreed that such a fight only benefits Newsom in the heavily Democratic state.

Newsom needs to inject intensity into its base, he noted on Twitter.

Under the new rules, employees who do not provide vaccination checks are required to undergo testing once or twice a week and wear a mask while on the job. Vaccine checks will also be required in prisons, homeless shelters and other places where people congregate, Newsom said. It’s unclear who will pay for the tests.

While about 62% of all eligible Californians are fully immunized, the state has struggled to make significant progress in recent weeks. Infections and hospitalizations are on the rise, with the delta variant now accounting for about 80% of cases in California, although the growing number is still well below the winter peak.

An individual’s choice not to be vaccinated is now impacting the rest of us in deep, devastating and deadly ways, Newsom said.

While many people who have yet to be vaccinated are just hesitant, political battles may not persuade more of an effort to get vaccinated.

An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll released last week found that 43% of Republicans said they had not been vaccinated or would definitely not be compared to 10% of Democrats . It was taken before some Republicans and cable figures started calling for the vaccination last week.

Overall, several epidemiologists have hailed Newsoms’ new policy as one that will encourage vaccinations and potentially lead other private sector employers to follow suit. Medical professionals applauded the rules, saying they were legal, ethical and necessary given a nationwide wave driven by the highly contagious delta variant.

He’s really showing leadership in strengthening the case for immunization, which the whole country is trying to do, said Dr Monica Gandhi, professor of infectious diseases at the University of California, San Francisco.

Newsom has been reluctant to reimpose mask or social distancing requirements since he authorized the reopening of the state on June 15. Meanwhile, the counties moved forward. Los Angeles County, home to a quarter of the state’s population, is once again demanding masks for people indoors, and several other counties have encouraged it.

Dozens of national health care organizations issued a letter Monday imploring employers in health care and long-term care homes to demand vaccination of employees. The San Francisco Bar Owner Alliance said it would recommend that its hundreds of members check proof of vaccination or a recent negative COVID-19 test result before allowing guests in.

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Har reported from San Francisco.

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