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Jen Psaki blasted for lauding schools defying Virginia gov Youngkin's mask mandate ban

Psaki defended Arlington Schools' decision to continue its mask requirement despite an order by Virginia gov Youngkin banning such mandates

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was slammed on social media after she applauded her child's school for defying Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin's ban on mask mandates in schools over the weekend.

Psaki, 43, defended Arlington Schools' decision to continue its mask requirement despite an order by the new Republican governor banning such mandates. Youngkin, 55, took office on Saturday, January 15, and one of his first orders demanded that school districts allow parents the flexibility of opting out of masking their children at school. Psaki, whose child attends Arlington Schools, slammed Youngkin saying his children do not attend schools in the district.

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"Hi there. Arlington county parent here (don't believe you are @GlennYoungkin but correct me if I am wrong). Thank you to @APSVirginia for standing up for our kids, teachers, and administrators and their safety in the midst of a transmissible variant," she wrote on Twitter.

Psaki, who has two children, aged 3 and 6, with husband Greg Mecher, quoted a clip where Youngkin was asked what the consequences would be if Arlington did not comply. "If there's one thing that hopefully everybody heard in November it's that it is time to listen to parents," the Governor asserted. "So over the course of this week, I hope they will listen to parents because we will use every resource within the governor's authority to explore what we will do and can do in order to make sure that parents' rights are protected."  

Youngkin, who became Virginia's first Republican governor in over a decade, signed 11 executive orders on his first day in office, including one that vowed to "empower Virginia parents in their children's education and upbringing by allowing parents to make decisions on whether their child wears a mask in school." Another order aimed to end the teaching of "divisive concepts" in the classroom such as critical race theory.  

Nonetheless, Arlington Public Schools announced in a statement shortly after the executive order on Saturday that it would continue to enforce a mask mandate on school grounds and buses. The district had implemented its own mask mandate even before former Gov. Ralph Northam made masking compulsory for all public schools. Meanwhile, Prince William County Schools also appeared to defy Youngkin by saying it would continue to require masks for its students.

Psaki was excoriated and mocked on social media for her comments.

"Move to DC loser," political strategist Caleb Hull wrote on Twitter.

"Jen, if for some reason you want to mask your children, you are still free to do so. This isn't a ban on masks, this is a ban on *forced masking* of children against other parents' wishes," Mollie Hemingway, senior editor at The Federalist, added.

"Concerned parent, who does press briefing daily without a mask on, breathing heavily transmissible virus into the open-air, wants forced masking on kids? Weird,” musician Five Times August commented, adding, “I should never see you without a mask. Ever.”

"This is why your approval ratings are in the 30s," Minnesota House Republican Andrew Wagner chimed in. "Even Psaki knows better than to move to DC under her party," journalist Jack Posobiec quipped.

Youngkin's campaign primarily focused on education issues and promised to get rid of Covid-related school closures and pledged to fight back against critical race theory and other progressive ideologies in the school system. Many Republicans consider Youngkin's successful campaign in Virginia as a blueprint ahead of the midterm elections this year, where they hope to regain control of the House of Representatives.