American Airlines Taking Fire for Playing Political Favorites

(AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool, File)

American Airlines has become the subject of criticism due to its selective enforcement of its mask policy. After yet another prominent Democrat was revealed to have been maskless during one of its flights, the company has been under pressure to apply their rules consistently.

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RedState’s Nick Arama reported, John Kerry, who is serving as President Joe Biden’s climate czar, was photographed on an American Airlines flight not wearing his mask. She noted:

Kerry appeared to be reading a book, not eating or drinking, and the mask appeared to be hanging off his ear.

Joe Biden has not only made a mask mandate a significant part of his campaign, he also issued an executive order making it mandatory on federal property and on federal transportation.

The company indicated that they are investigating the matter, but so far, they have not made a decision about the apparent violation of its mask rules. The mandate dictates that passengers wear masks whenever they are not eating or drinking. Some airlines have been so strict as to mandate that mask be worn between bites and sips.

The White House has not yet commented on the matter and press secretary Jen Psaki has not so much as promised to “circle back” with the public. Kerry insisted that the violation was nothing more than a “momentary” lapse in his usual mask-wearing habits.

However, American Airlines has indicated that they will ensure Kerry does not violate its rules again. In an email to Breitbart News, spokeswoman Stacy Day wrote:

Our team works diligently to make sure customers are wearing masks properly as they travel with us, and flight attendants pass through the cabin several times during flight to ensure compliance. The crew did not observe Secretary Kerry without a mask, and they were not alerted by other customers to a non-compliance issue. We continue to review the matter and we are reaching out to Secretary Kerry to underscore that all customers are expected to wear masks for the duration of their trip.

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Well, that’s good. American Airlines will write a stern warning to Kerry about violating their mask rules. Meanwhile, the company has removed other people from flights and issued bans to people who fail to adhere to their rules.

The fact that the company has not bothered to take the issue seriously underscores the lack of seriousness over the COVID-19 matter. Indeed, the reality that progressives who enjoy scolding the rest of the nation about mask usage are not that concerned over Kerry’s hypocrisy is also telling.

If a high-profile Republican were caught in the exact same situation, there can be no doubt that activist media outlets like CNN, MSNBC, The New York Times, and The Washington Post would be screaming to high heaven about the violation. This hypocrisy is one of the reasons why so many Americans – even on the left – are pushing back on the onerous restrictions that the far left wishes to foist upon them. If the left don’t themselves take these mask policies seriously, why should anyone else?

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