Ohio GOP Gubernatorial Candidate Jim Renacci on Friday took aim at President Joe Biden’s newly-imposed vaccine mandate.

“The pandemic and shutdown have already killed so many jobs and businesses, now Joe Biden and his new proposed COVID mandate wants to finish off the rest,” Renacci said in a statement.

The statement from Renacci follows Biden’s announcement on Thursday that his administration and the Department of Labor plan to require all businesses with more than 100 employees to require COVID-19 vaccinations or weekly testing, potentially affecting approximately 100 million Americans.

If employers do not enact the mandate or weekly testing, businesses could face thousands of dollars worth of fines.

“What Biden is trying to do is pit employers against their employees with the threat of government fines if they do not comply. This unconstitutional mandate will not hold up in a court of law, but Biden has shown he is not worried about the lawfulness of his policies. He is more interested in inflicting as much pain as he can on businesses and people who believe in individual freedom and the right to make their own choices without the government interfering,” Renacci described.

The move by Biden seemingly disregards previous statements by himself and White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, pledging to not enact vaccine mandates.

Renacci, questioning the approach to use government mandates to force vaccination, also called the move hypocritical.

“The hypocrisy of Biden and the Left is deafening. When it comes to vaccines and the freedom to make their own health decisions, they gladly support the government imposing their will and forcing everyone to comply without exceptions,” he said.

Elected leaders across the country have slammed Biden’s decisions and criticized his attempt to bypass state lawmakers in issuing the mandate.

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Cooper Moran is a reporter for The Star News Network. Follow Cooper on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Jim Renacci” by Jim Renacci.