President Joe Biden urged American parents Monday to stop allowing their kids to spend time with unvaccinated people and to make sure they wear masks.
“Make sure that everyone around your child who can be vaccinated is vaccinated,” Biden said, referring to other parents, adults, and teenagers in their social circles.
He also encouraged parents to put their own personal mask mandates on their children.
“Make sure child is masked when they leave home,” he said. “That’s how we can best keep our kids safe.”
A child wearing a face shield and mask stands in the cafeteria of Medora Elementary School. (Jon Cherry/Getty Images).
The president has repeatedly endorsed mask mandates for schoolchildren in America and publicly condemned Republican governors for enacting bans on mask mandates in schools.
US President Joe Biden speaks during an update on the situation in Afghanistan. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images).
Recent polling shows Americans growing increasingly critical of Biden’s response to the pandemic after the surge of the Delta variant of the virus in the United States.
An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll showed Biden’s approval rating for the issue drop 12 points.
Sixty-six percent of Americans approved of his response in July. Only 54 percent now support his handling of the issue. The poll was conducted from August 12-16.
Other polls have indicated that fewer Americans trust Biden’s handling of the pandemic.