New York Governor Hochul Says Unvaccinated ‘Aren’t Listening To God’

Mary Margaret Olohan Americans who have not yet been vaccinated “aren’t listening to God,” Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said during a se

Mary Margaret Olohan

Americans who have not yet been vaccinated “aren’t listening to God,” Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said during a service at the Brooklyn Christian Cultural Center.

“We are not through this pandemic,” the governor told those gathered Sunday. “I wished we were but I prayed a lot to God during this time and you know what – God did answer our prayers. He made the smartest men and women, the scientists, the doctors, the researchers – he made them come up with a vaccine.”

Hochul urged the attendees to thank God for the vaccine, adding that she wears her “vaccinated” necklace all the time to let others know she is vaccinated.

“All of you, yes, I know you’re vaccinated, you’re the smart ones, but you know there’s people out there who aren’t listening to God and what God wants,” she continued. “You know who they are.”

The governor also called on those gathered at the Brooklyn center to be her “apostles,” to “go out and talk about it.”

“And here is my promise to you, my friends,” she concluded. “I will use the inspiration of God in my life and fight for you every single day as your governor and beyond.”

Hochul said Saturday that she may deploy medically trained members of the National Guard to fill expected worker shortages after Monday evening’s 11:59 p.m. vaccine deadline.

“We are still in a battle against COVID to protect our loved ones, and we need to fight with every tool at our disposal,” Hochul said. “I am monitoring the staffing situation closely, and we have a plan to increase our health care workforce and help alleviate the burdens on our hospitals and other health care facilities.”

Hochul also told reporters earlier in September that she was unaware “of a sanctioned religious exemption from any organized religion,” dismissing the idea that healthcare workers could be religiously exempt from the state’s vaccine mandate.

“To the extent that there’s leadership of different religious organizations that have spoken, and they have, I’m not aware of a sanctioned religious exemption from any organized religion,” Hochul said. “In fact, they’re encouraging the opposite. They’re encouraging their members, everybody from the Pope on down, is encouraging people to get vaccinated. So people will say what they choose.”