GOP leaders blast Biden's 'absurd' plastic ban at government establishments while 'the world is on fire'

WASHINGTON, DC: Republicans have expressed outrage over the Joe Biden administration's focus on banning single-use plastic utensils amid ongoing wars and while the "world is on fire".

The White House recently unveiled a strategy to eliminate single-use plastics in government facilities. The plan will also impose stricter regulations on plastic manufacturers in the US, according to the administration.

Mike Rounds blasts Joe Biden's plastic ban

Republicans called the Joe Biden administration's move "laughable," arguing it will "raise costs" and negatively impact US plastic suppliers, claiming the effort is ridiculous and will inevitably backfire.

"The world's on fire and he's worried about plastic forks," Senator Mike Rounds, R-SD, told Daily Mail. He added that the policy is "par for the course" for the administration.

"Look, I certainly understand that plastics are a pollutant, we need to do a better job with it," Rounds went on to say. "But I'm a little bit hesitant to say that this plastic ban will be a good thing.''

"Black and white mandates like this typically backfire. I think there's things that we could do as a government, as well as individuals, to keep improving our environment," he added.

Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss, described Biden's effort as "absurd" and "laughable" to DailyMail.com.

"I mean, first of all, what is so bad about plastic forks and spoons? I mean, I assume the biggest impact this will have will be at government workplaces, military bases, things like that," Senator Mike Lee, R-Utah, speculated.

He further asked, "Does that mean that they're going to have to have, like, stainless steel silverware everywhere, with a lot of people washing dishes, and what about people who need things to go?"

He argued that the initiative to eliminate single-use plastics is misguided. He suggested that if the White House truly intends to cut down on waste, it should reduce the size of government consumption rather than banning the plastic products that are used.

Lee said, "They should shrink the government if they want it to be less of a consumer. The reason it's the largest consumer is because it's it employs so many people, and it's doing so many things it was probably never intended to do."

"So if they want to reduce the impact of the US government environmentally, they should right-size the government," he further asked.

He went on to say, "Now, I hope this isn't a step toward banning them, like a public facing ban of general applicability."

Lindsey Graham skeptical about effectiveness of ban

South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham acknowledged the critical issue of plastic pollution in the world's oceans, yet he expressed doubts regarding the effectiveness of a ban.

"Well, I'd like to deal with plastics in the ocean problem. But I'm not so sure this is the answer," he told DailyMail.com.

The plan's key initiative is the gradual elimination of single-use plastics used in food, packaging, and events procured by the federal government by 2027. The aim is to completely remove all single-use plastics from federal activities by 2035.

"It's more messaging and ridiculousness, and it's a direct shot to that whole industry," Senator James Lankford, a Republican from Oklahoma, provided an exclusive statement to DailyMail.com. "It's also clearly not where everybody is. It's going to raise costs for a lot of folks so it seems to be just irrelevant on deficit issues."

Lankford, who was in the House from 2011 to 2015, remembered past efforts to prohibit plastic dinnerware on Capitol Hill, observing that such initiatives are often reversed by subsequent administrations.

The decision to ban plastic utensils, including spoons and forks, initially sparked outrage among Republicans years ago when former speaker Nancy Pelosi first prohibited them in 2007.

When Republicans took back control of the House in 2011, they reversed the ban, citing the nearly half a million dollars spent on transporting the compostable utensils.

"We've been through that here at the capitol as you know, when Speaker Pelosi said we're going to have digestible silverware everywhere, and everyone went crazy for it, until they started using it to realize you're eating your spoon as well and it doesn't taste great," Lankford commented on Pelosi's 2007 'Green the Capitol' initiative.

Nancy Pelosi's initiative brought biodegradable utensils to Capitol Hill, but the effort was reversed by Republicans in 2011. Once the GOP, under the leadership of former speaker John Boehner, regained control, Styrofoam cups and plastic forks made a comeback in the Capitol cafeterias.

Joe Biden mocked for banning single-use plastic in government buildings

As soon as the news about Joe Biden banning single-use plastic in government buildings surfaced online, readers took the comments section of the Daily Mail article and criticized the President.

One social media user wrote, "They don't care if the world is on fire. They've already made their millions trading in influence and on the inside after their secret deals and party voting. What does it matter to this political mercantile class that gets their talents of silver for selling the lives of Americans and especially the lives of American soldiers cheap? There's always new sons and daughters from citizens to feed into any conflict."

Another added, "Liberals don’t create, they only regulate."

One commentator wrote, "Another biden failure, why is anyone still listening to this criminal."

"Hidden Biden, Master of Disaster," another added.

One person remarked, "Ban Democrats and make the world a better place."

Another added, "He has absolutely no business being in that office....never did! They'd better count the silverware before he leaves the White House!"

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.