Ohio state Rep. Nino Vitale (R) got biblical on Monday while railing against protective face masks that help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Vitale posted a screed on Facebook in which he argued that the U.S. was “founded on Judeo-Christian Principles” that proclaim that “we are all created in the image and likeness of God.”
“That image is seen the most by our face,” he wrote. “I will not wear a mask.”
The post included a video of Ohio state health director Dr. Amy Acton and Gov. Mike DeWine (R) discussing the issue, bookended by a recording of Vitale reiterating his opposition to requiring people to wear masks.
“When we think of image, do we think of a chest or our legs or our arms?” the GOP lawmaker asked. “We think of their face…that’s the image of God right there, and I want to see it in my brothers and sisters.”
Vitale has vehemently opposed the state’s COVID-19 containment measures, particularly DeWine’s stay at home order. The mandate was signed by Acton, whom Vitale disparaged last week as an “unelected Globalist,” an anti-Semitic dog whistle.
