White House claims that Americans favor travel mask mandate based on old polling

According to Real Clear Politics, Jen Psaki and other people speaking on behalf of the White House have been citing two recent polls, one by the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs, and another one by Consult/Politico. Both show the American public heavily favoring mask mandates for travel.

However, both of these polls were "conducted the weekend before the decision was dropped," and, Real Clear Politics continued to report, "those headlines were quickly overshadowed by viral videos of overjoyed travelers and flight attendants ditching their masks."

"There is still a strong commitment to safety among a meaningful, measurable percentage of the country," commented Frank Lutz, a Republican public relations and polling expert.

"That said, the moment that the masks come off, everything changes," he went on. "You start to think of what you hated about it, rather than why you're wearing it. You think about the negatives of it, rather than the rationale for it."

Luntz is convinced that the polls would yield drastically different results if they were to be conducted today: "I have no doubt that the mood today would be different than 72 hours ago," he mentioned during an interview.

Vivek Murphy, the US Surgeon General, remains worried about the mask mandate being stricken, and wanted to encourage the public to continue masking up in those settings:

"Bottom line: wearing a mask while traveling is a small step that can go a long way to protecting ourselves and others," he said.

The White House has also recommending continued masking while in transit.