Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is not in touch with reality, no matter her continued presence in Congress. This Monday, she complained on Twitter about so-called “vaccine passports” that are under development, which would allow holders to prove that they have been vaccinated against COVID-19 and could be used in connection to airplane travel, live in-person event admission, and more. Greene characterized “vaccine passports,” which have already been rolled out in a limited capacity, as “Biden’s Mark of the Beast,” which is just ridiculous.
As Greene bizarrely put it:
‘They are actually talking about people’s ability to buy and sell linked to the vaccine passport. They might as well call it Biden’s Mark of the Beast.’
They are actually talking about people’s ability to buy and sell linked to the vaccine passport.
They might as well call it Biden’s Mark of the Beast.
— Marjorie Taylor Greene 🇺🇸 (@mtgreenee) March 29, 2021
The “mark of the beast” is a concept from the Bible referring to a “mark” that the book claims that people will get during a future apocalypse to prove their loyalty to the so-called Antichrist. The idea of a “mark,” of course, is pretty vague, and throughout modern American history, conservatives have proposed various manifestations of basic societal progress as the “mark.” The truth is, however, that ascribing apocalyptic undertones to a basic public health protection program is just ridiculous — and dangerous, considering the fact that vaccination could literally be a matter of life and death.
As summarized in a recent report from The Verge, Biden’s team “is working on plans for how to manage credentials that would let people prove they’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19,” and the White House says that it “will have more information available on its approach to overseeing vaccine credentials soon.” At present, Americans already have to show “credentials” for a whole host of routine activities, from buying alcohol to traveling outside the country. Actual passports, meaning documents providing authorization to enter and exit the country, are well established. Are those going to be the next targets of Greene’s ignorant and wildly apocalyptic fearmongering?
Based on poll data, Republicans appear to be those harboring the most hesitation towards the COVID-19 vaccine, no matter the vaccines’ well-documented safety (and even Trump’s relentless attempts to take grandiose credit for the vaccines). In a recent NPR/PBS/Marist survey, 49 percent of Republican men and 47 percent of overall 2020 Trump voters said that they’re not planning to get vaccinated against COVID-19. In contrast, only 6 percent of Democratic men said that they don’t plan to get vaccinated.
Check out Twitter’s response to the nonsense from Greene below:
