The Fox News judicial analyst discussed the issue during the network’s “America’s Newsroom” program. He said that the 10th Amendment to the Constitution reserves matters of public health and safety to the states, but even they lack the authority to mandate masks anywhere but state property.
“The federal government certainly can’t do it because the federal government is not charged with public health or public safety,” Napolitano told Fox News’ Melissa Francis. “That is an area that is reserved by the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution for the states.”
“And that brings us to whether the states have the authority to do that, and the answer again is no,” said the judge. “If a person is known to be contagious, the state could require that person to be quarantined or wear a mask,