OPINION:
President Biden is planning to give away 400 million N95 face masks to the American people as a means of fighting the spread of the coronavirus and its variants.
That’s “give” in quotation marks, of course.
The federal government does not “give” anything away. Taxpayers pay for everything and anything governments at all levels — federal, state and local — use, misuse, abuse, distribute and redistribute.
So when Team Biden talks about giving away 400 million face masks, what the administration really means is it’s taking 400 million face masks worth of U.S. tax dollars and distributing it among the good citizens of the United States — and labeling it free. This is a lie. It’s not free; it’s paid with taxes.
But what makes this particular government lie even worse is that the real beneficiary of this taxpayer-funded distribution is — China.
“Most N95 masks are still made in China,” Rolling Stone wrote in December.
Meanwhile, The New York Times wrote this month about Bill Taubner, the president of Bona Fide Masks, “the exclusive distributor in the United States for both Powecom and Harley KN95 masks, which are from China.”
Yay, Team Biden.
Helping fund the communist competition, one face mask at a time.
Of course, it’s all done indirectly.
The face mask distribution program just announced by the White House is using N95s that have been stored in the Strategic National Stockpile — a government stash of more than 750 million masks.
“The masks will be available for pickup at pharmacies and community health centers across the country,” NBC wrote. “They will begin shipping this week for distribution starting late next week.”
But once again: The government doesn’t actually own a Strategic National Stockpile. The taxpayers do. And once again: the masks that fed into this stockpile, according to previous reports, hailed in large part from China.
And here’s the final question: When these stockpiles of masks are depleted, where will this White House turn for restocking?
Shhh. China?
“To ensure broad access for all Americans, there will be three masks available per person,” one unnamed White House official said to CNN. “In addition to this program, thanks to the administration’s efforts, these high-quality masks are in ample supply and widely available to American consumers.”
Hmm. Thanks to the administration’s efforts? That’s a hoot.
Thanks to this administration’s efforts, American taxpayers have paid good money for China to make and ship face masks back to the United States, so this president can announce their distribution and pat himself on the back as saving the citizens from a variant of the coronavirus that’s akin to a cold.
What a guy, this presidential guy.
What a lie this administration advances.
Fight the face mask.
China may not like it. Biden may not like it. The American pols who’ve sold out the American citizenry to China and the far-leftists in the Biden camp may not like it. But enough of the dupe. Enough of the deception.
America’s freedoms shouldn’t be for sale. They shouldn’t be allowed to crumble on a face mask. And an enemy of the American way shouldn’t be allowed to profit from those falling freedoms.
• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley. Listen to her podcast “Bold and Blunt” by clicking HERE. And never miss her column; subscribe to her newsletter by clicking HERE. Her latest book, “Socialists Don’t Sleep: Christians Must Rise Or America Will Fall,” is available by clicking HERE.
For more information, visit The Washington Times COVID-19 resource page.
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