Friday’s spectacular decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit enjoining the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention from enforcing its illegal Conditional Sailing Order – which imposes numerous onerous restrictions that have stopped most cruiseships from resuming operations – demonstrates the appellate courts are taking a dim view of CDC’s COVID-19 orders that are not authorized by Congress and violate the Constitution, federal laws, and regulations.
Combined with the Supreme Court’s decision last month signaling it would strike down any additional CDC Eviction Moratorium orders, this gives me great confidence the Federal Transportation Mask Mandate and International Traveler Testing Requirement will be the next CDC unlawful pandemic orders to be vacated by the judiciary.
I filed suit (Wall v. CDC) June 7 in the U.S. District Court in Orlando to stop CDC, the Transportation Security Administration, and other federal and local agencies from enforcing the FTMM and ITTR. Both were hastily issued without the required public notice and comment period shortly after President Joseph Biden took office, were not enacted into law by Congress, exceed the Executive Branch’s statutory and constitutional authority, and violate numerous Department of Transportation regulations prohibiting discrimination against passengers with disabilities such as myself who can’t tolerate wearing a face covering.
Next up in Wall v. CDC: I have a July 27 deadline to oppose the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority’s and Central Florida Regional Transportation Authority’s motions to dismiss the complaint. Then CDC and the five other federal defendants have an Aug. 9 deadline to answer my complaint, respond to my motion for summary judgment, and file the administrative record. I hope to get a court hearing later in August.
Lucas Wall has been staying with his mother in The Villages as he fights the Federal Transportation Mask Mandate.