Romney was the only Republican to oppose repealing the mandates. Eight Democrats broke ranks and supported the measure, which makes sense, given that the mask requirement on airplanes is inexplicable at this point. According to CNN’s Ali Zaslav, citing a Romney aide, Romney voted to keep the mandates because “he believes it’s important for public health officials to make these types of decisions, not politicians.”

Romney has apparently forgotten what Utahns elected him to do in the U.S. Senate. He has this whole thing exactly backward. Public health officials are appointed to offer guidance to politicians, not to make decisions for them. Decisions are supposed to be made by elected officials, such as senators and presidents. This is, in fact, the only responsibility Romney and other legislators have. His job is to make these types of decisions, not to hand them off to unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats.