Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Mask mandate, AP Photo/Evan Vucci Texas Governor Greg Abbott just threw down the gauntlet to any tin pot water commissioner, mayor, or school board member who wants to keep Texans wrapped up in a mask. He’s turned COVID mask mandates on their ear by prohibiting mask mandates by any governmental entity in the state. That’s right, it’s a mandate against mask mandates. He signed an emergency declaration on Tuesday declaring that Texans have a “liberty to choose” whether or not they’ll wear a mask. We can continue to mitigate COVID-19 while defending Texans’ liberty to choose whether or not they mask up.