NASSAU COUNTY (VINnews) — Newly appointed Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman has decided to leave the issue of school mask mandates in the hands of the schools, in direct defiance of recent guidance from New York Gov. Hochul.
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Blakeman signed three executive orders on Thursday in regard to masking, with one of them handing control of the mask issue back to the schools.
Blakeman had harsh words for Hochul’s mandate before signing the order, accusing Albanay of imposing an “autocracy” on New York residents.
“School boards are comprised of elected officials who make decisions based upon the unique circumstances of each district,” said Blakeman at his press conference on Thursday. “They are in the best position to make these decisions, not an autocracy in Albany.”
While it remains to be seen whether or not the executive order holds up to legal challenges, Blakeman seems confident it will be successful.
“This executive order gives the school districts their own individual right to make decisions within the county under our home rule authority that we have as a county,” he said. “Our county is larger than nine states and we don’t need people in Albany telling us what we should be doing.”
The other two orders signed Thursday include one that gives public county workers the right to not masks indoors, as well as one that formalizes his decision not to enforce Hochul’s mask mandates that “unfairly fine residents and small businesses thousands of dollars.”
“We are taking a very aggressive approach in fighting COVID-19,” he said. “But this aggressive approach must be balanced by keeping in mind the psychological and economic risks of every decision we make as well as individual constitutional rights.”
Finally. someone has his head screwed on right!
unlike the judenrat shomer israel chucky aguda schumer, this is a Jewish legislator we can be proud of.
Newly elected, not “newly appointed”
So he is somehow taking credit for not deciding anything at all.