There is a new Covid in town, a subvariant of Omicron they’re calling stealth Omicron. Let this be a warning to conservatives declaring victory over Covid mandates: Democrats will not hesitate to put Covid precautions back in place as soon as it becomes politically convenient.

Stealth Omicron, also known as Omicron BA.2, first emerged in Europe in late January. Since then, it has become the predominant strain of Covid-19 in at least 18 countries, and has reportedly been detected in all 50 states.

The media is already laying the groundwork for stealth Omicron to be at fault for the next round of Covid mandates, citing preliminary studies that show stealth Omicron is more transmissible than its not-so-stealth cousin or other relatives like Delta. A study from Japan, for example, found that stealth Omicron was 30% more transmissible than the already highly transmissible regular Omicron. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stealth Omicron was responsible for 8% of all new cases of Covid-19 in the U.S., a figure that was doubling every week.

To make matters worse, other early studies, such as one Danish study, found that reinfections from stealth Omicron were four times as common for individuals who previously recovered from the Delta variant compared to those who previously had Omicron.

What they omit, however, is that this is how viruses typically mutate. They become more transmissible and less deadly overtime in search of suitable hosts. So, no wonder Delta was more transmissible than the original, Omicron more contagious than Delta, and you can bet that whatever comes after stealth Omicron will be more transmissible than all its predecessors. 

As Democrat-run states and liberal metropolises scrap their vaccine and mask mandates, it’s tempting for conservatives to make pithy comments about “the science” or outright declare victory over Covid. While time has vindicated those who were skeptical about Covid and strategies to contain it from the beginning, these are just small battles in a war that is likely to continue for years to come.

When it becomes politically convenient for the regime to reinstate mask and vaccine mandates, which, if I had to guess, will probably be some time in mid-November of this year, they won’t hesitate to do so. We’ve learned this lesson in the lead up to the 2020 election, when liberal cities and states clung onto mandates and lockdowns to damage President Donald Trump’s prospects for reelection, only to scrap Covid precautions after Biden was declared the victor, which were then quickly reinstated when cases “spiked” again later that winter. But the message was clear: vote and do as we say, and maybe we’ll put an end to the pandemic. This pattern has repeated, albeit in slightly different iterations, ever since.

So, sure, rejoice in the current victory, but understand this fight is far from over because the Covid regime is not separate, but part of, the broader liberal regime that seeks to exert its will over the public. As long as those currently in power are driving the train, the Covid pandemic is going to be along for the ride.