Betsy DeVos on escalating mask debate: ‘Leave these decisions to parents’
Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on schools defying GOP governors' mask mandate ban.
Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Tuesday said masking children in schools is a decision that should be left to parents.
"I think the right answer is that parents really need to be in a position to decide what is best for each of their children," DeVos told "America’s Newsroom."
"We know that, for some, kids feel more comfortable if they are wearing masks. Others do not and [feel they] are detrimental to them," DeVos said.
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DeVos's comments came after Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy opposed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis's decision to sign an executive order a week and a half ago preventing school districts in his state from mandating that students and school employees wear masks.
"I do disagree with Governor DeSantis. The local officials should have control here," the two-term senator from Louisiana and physician said Sunday during an interview on CNN’s "State of the Union."
"I'm a conservative. I think you govern best when you govern closest to the people being governed," Cassidy continued. "And if a local community is having their ICU is full and the people at the local schools see that they've got to make sure they stay open because otherwise children miss out for another year of school, and they put in policy, then the local officials should be listened to. That is a conservative principle."
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The push by DeSantis came amid the surge in COVID cases in Florida due to the spread of the extremely infectious delta variant. And it sparked a war of words between the potential 2024 GOP presidential contender and President Biden last week.
DeVos said former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Dr. Robert Redfield’s suggestion to increase ventilation and that the mask question was not a "one size fits all" were very practical assessments.
She stressed the masking decision should ultimately be left to parents, not schools.
"When schools try to dictate and mandate and it doesn't work for a family, give parents other options to choose," DeVos said.
"Florida is actually considering that with families that are being in the district that is forcing mask-wearing. If it's not going to work for your child, you should be able to take your child to another school that is going to work for them."
Fox News' Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
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