Coast Guard Aviation Survival Technician Second Class Zach Loesch is a genuine hero. He rescued a couple who were trapped in their bedroom as Hurricane Ian ravaged their home. After saving the couple’s lives, Loesch went back and grabbed the wife’s wheelchair.
Joe Biden thought that Loesch’s actions were heroic as well, and the president called him and Lieutenant Commander Christopher Hooper on Friday “to personally thank them for the heroic work that they and their Coast Guard colleagues have performed during search and rescue operations in response to Hurricane Ian,” as a White House press release described the call.
“The President thanked them for saving lives and asked for a report on the work that continues to rescue Floridians,” the statement continued. “He also asked if they needed any additional support that he can provide to accelerate successful rescues; they indicated they have gotten what they need to execute their vital mission.”
Biden even boasted of speaking with Loesch on the phone — and rightly so.
“I told him how proud of him I was and thanked him for all the work he and his Coasties are doing to save lives,” the president said.
It’s too bad Biden’s “additional support” didn’t include rescinding the COVID-19 vaccination mandate that is phasing Loesch out of his Coast Guard career.
To be fair, we can be certain that the president didn’t know that he was speaking to someone whom the mandate was affecting, but if he had known, would it have pricked his conscience to know that Loesch is set to depart the Coast Guard in the next 30-60 days because of the mandate?
Breitbart reports that Loesch had applied for a religious exemption to the White House mandate that all U.S. Armed Forces personnel receive the vaccine. When the first application was denied, Loesch appealed, and the appeal was also denied.
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Loesch points out that he doesn’t believe that his unvaccinated status doesn’t affect his ability to do his job or to serve the public.
“If I had asked any of the people I saved yesterday if they wanted to come with me even though I am unvaccinated, every single one of them would have said ‘yes,’” he told Breitbart.
Still, Loesch didn’t want to rock the boat on the call with Biden by bringing up the mandate.
“It just sucks that he thanked me yet the vaccine mandate is what’s kicking me out,” he said to Breitbart. “I just love my job and I’m really good at it. It sucks. I feel like this is the job that I was born to do.”
The actions of Coast Guard members like Loesch and Hooper are just a small part of the amazing rescue efforts that are taking place in the aftermath of Ian.
“At the President’s direction, dozens of Coast Guard helicopters and rescue boats were pre-deployed to support Federal, state, and local search and rescue operations as part of an unprecedented interagency Search and Rescue Coordination Group led by FEMA,” the White House press release related. “As of today, their work has saved hundreds of lives. The role of the U.S. Coast Guard was particularly notable in driving those efforts. Up to 16 Coast Guard aircraft have been in the air in search of survivors in need of help since daybreak yesterday, rescuing over 100 people along the southwest Florida coast.”
It’s just a shame that the federal government’s shameful vaccine mandates are hurting heroes like Loesch.
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