Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, in an apparent pivot from earlier declarations that he would leave enforcement of mask-wearing mandates to state and local authorities, said Thursday that he would, if elected, compel Americans to wear masks on federal property.
Biden called for a nationwide mask-wearing mandate in his Democratic Nation Convention speech but later, when questioned about the president having the legal authority to do so, said he would not, adding that a federal mandate would likely be unconstitutional. He said he would strongly encourage mask-wearing via a federal standard, but that he would leave enforcement to governors.
