5 governors seek Guard shots leeway

States’ GOP leaders ask Pentagon to rethink dictates on training, punishments

Five Republican governors have asked the Pentagon to withdraw its requirement for all National Guard members to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, expanding the front of GOP resistance to President Joe Biden’s directives that the federal workforce and government contractors be immunized.

Governors from Iowa, Wyoming, Alaska, Mississippi and Nebraska on Tuesday signed a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, saying they agree that he has authority to impose requirements on service members under federal control. That includes National Guard troops — ordinarily under the state command — when they are mobilized for duty beyond their borders, such as overseas deployments.

“However, directives dictating whether training in a Title 32 status can occur, setting punishment requirements for refusing to be covid-19 vaccinated, and requiring separation from each state National Guard if unvaccinated are beyond your constitutional and statutory authority,” the letter said. Title 32 status is the authority that governors use as commanders-in-chief of their troops.

The letter from the five governors follows Republican Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt’s order to his top National Guard commander to make the vaccine optional for troops while under state control and decline punishments for any Guard members who refused the vaccine.

Austin’s guidance, published in response to Oklahoma’s bid, said all 2.1 million service members, including National Guard personnel under state command, are obligated to follow his August order instructing them to get the vaccine. Failure to comply, he has said, will result in disciplinary action and imperil their careers.

“No credit or excused absence shall be afforded to members who do not participate in drills, training, or other duty due to failure to be fully vaccinated against covid-19,” Austin said.

Training and exercises conducted by the National Guard are overseen by the states but funded by the federal government.

The letter comes two weeks after the vaccination deadline for Air National Guard members, making the move little more than political posturing for thousands of Air Guard members in those states who have already received the vaccine. The effort to stave off the requirement at this point is relevant only to Army National Guard soldiers, whose deadline to be vaccinated is the end of June.

In a separate statement, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said it’s “unconscionable to think the government will go so far as to strip these honorable men and women of the nation’s top duties if they don’t comply.” Guard members, she said, “protect the very freedoms that the federal government apparently doesn’t believe they too deserve.”

Spokesmen for Reynolds, the Iowa National Guard and the Pentagon did not respond to requests for comment. It is unclear if these five states will pursue a policy similar to Oklahoma’s and tell Guard members the vaccine is optional while they are under state control.

Last week, Brig. Gen. Thomas Mancino, commander of the Oklahoma National Guard, clarified the stakes and consequences for vaccine refusal.

“Anyone exercising their personal responsibility and deciding not to take the vaccine, must realize that the potential for career ending federal action, barring a favorable court ruling, legislative intervention, or a change in policy is present,” he said. His defense of Stitt’s authority should not be construed as protection from punishments that arise when troops are put under federal control, he said.

“I have no such power,” Mancino said.

National Guard vaccine rates are well below those of their active-duty counterparts. The Air National Guard, which had a Dec. 2 deadline, is 92% vaccinated, according to National Guard Bureau data last week. More than 66% of Army National Guard soldiers had at least one dose.

More than 97% of the active-duty military has had at least one vaccine dose, according to Pentagon data.

The National Guard has absorbed a disproportionate share of the 79 deaths among military personnel infected with the coronavirus. National Guard members account for about 28% of all covid-19-related deaths in the military, although they constitute only about 19% of the entire armed forces.