MEMPHIS, Tenn. — With each passing day, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee faces increasing pressure to change his way of thinking about how to keep school children safe from COVID-19. From the start of the pandemic in Tennessee, Lee has been anything but aggressive in responding to the deadly virus. He was never a fan of shutting down the economy, or remote learning for school children. And he rarely if ever spoke up in favor of a general mask mandate.
Now, with a third wave of cases ravaging the state – Lee continues to be out of step with prudent measures to slow the spread. His executive order last week allowing parents to opt-out of mask mandates at public schools was perhaps his most dreadful decision so far.
The Shelby County and Metro Nashville school districts are simply ignoring the order. And Thursday, the Shelby County government filed a federal lawsuit against Lee, accusing him of putting children at risk and depriving them of equal protection under the constitution. Even the CEO of St. Jude Hospital is openly critical of the governor for his mask opt out order. Not to mention that Lee’s own state Health Department says masks are the best defense against the spread of COVID in schools.
Like I said, it’s been a bad stretch for the governor. But he can still turn it around with a change of heart – and a big change in governing.