Here’s what Biden is focusing on…
On Tuesday (March 1), President Joe Biden will be delivering his State of the Unions address, something he has to do while divisions over the COVID-19 serve as a backdrop.
Outside the Capitol where Biden will be conducting his address, law enforcement is gearing up for a convoy of truckers who may be disruptive and are expected to start arriving in Washington. The convoy will be in the same vein as the Ottawa demonstration, which was largely celebrated by conservatives for standing up to the COVID-19 restrictions.
Inside the Capitol, Biden will be addressing lawmakers who will be social distancing, but may not be wearing masks, as the requirement was revealed to be optional late on Sunday.
The decision to make masks optional came after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced changes to the mask recommendations, easing the use of masks as the Omicron variant subsides.
The new recommendations, which emphasize hospital rates rather than case numbers, now give the District of Columbia a “low” community level of COVID-19 and also means that people can choose to wear a mask.
The day before the CDC released its official stance on masking, Speaker Nancy Pelosi revealed that the protocols for the State of the Union may be more “relaxed.”
Speaking at an event in San Francisco about the matter, Pelosi said, “We have the State of the Union address by the president, which we’re very excited about. And hopefully, we’ll be able to do it in a more relaxed COVID way, but we don’t know. We’ll just hear from the Capitol physician about that.”
