And herein lies the essence of the control over political leaders. The current Covid surge, while openly reported on, isn’t being framed as Biden’s fault, because he has agreed to defer to the experts. He is granted protection, and any blame for the persistence of Covid is targeted at those who are challenging his mandates.

To be clear, it is perfectly appropriate for public-health officials to present the best and most up-to-date evidence to decision-makers and advise them on what they believe to be the best course of action to fight the spread of infectious diseases. But it is the role of elected leaders to weigh any such advice against other priorities.

Unfortunately, too many leaders have uncritically ceded authority to public-health officials, myopically focusing on reducing Covid spread over all other priorities — including economic well-being, religious observance, social interaction, and the education and mental health of children (who face virtually no threat from the virus). And they continue to do so — even though following the advice of these so-called experts has not shut down the virus.