WASHINGTON – Vice President Mike Pence and House and Senate leaders received their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine Friday as they tried to reassure the American public that the shot is safe. Pence celebrated the milestone at a live television event as “a medical miracle” that could eventually end a raging pandemic that killed more than 310,000 people across the country.
Noticeably absent: President Donald Trump, who has largely remained out of sight five days after the largest vaccination campaign in the country’s history.
‘I didn’t feel anything. Good job, ”Pence told technicians at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center Friday morning as he became the most senior US official to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech injection, the first authorized in the US.
Later, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, and Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, tweeted photos of herself receiving the vaccine from the Capitol doctor, who urged all members of Congress to join them.
The public displays come as U.S. health officials try to convince ordinary Americans, who may be skeptical about the vaccinations, to pave the way for the pandemic to end.
A recent study from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that only about half of Americans want to get the vaccine as soon as possible. Another quarter of the audience is not sure, while the remaining quarter says they are not interested. Some are just against vaccines in general. Others are concerned that the injections have been rushed and want to see how the rollout goes.
Trump, who was hospitalized with COVID-19 in October, was largely absent from the bid to sell the American public on the basis of which the hope will be an important part of his legacy. He has not held any public events to trumpet the rollout. He did not say when he will be vaccinated. And he’s tweeted about the vaccines less than a handful of times, despite sending a flurry of tweets on other topics.
He weighed in on Friday night with a congratulatory tweet after the Food and Drug Administration cleared the rollout of a second vaccine developed by Moderna Inc. and the National Institutes of Health.
Trump’s relative silence comes as he continues to rage over his defeat in the Nov. 3 election and embraces increasingly extreme efforts to overturn the will of the people. He has pushed aside the plans of aides who wanted him to become the public face of the vaccination campaign, avoid visits to labs and manufacturing facilities to thank employees, or host efforts to build public confidence in the shot, according to people familiar with the conversations who spoke on condition of anonymity to speak candidly.
Instead, Pence was the one who took the spotlight, highlighting the safety and efficacy of the vaccines, and visited a manufacturing facility this week before headlining Friday’s event.
Pence didn’t flinch during the quick shot, and neither did his wife Karen. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, who is black, also got a shot at the televised White House event and stressed the importance of color communities seeing people like him get vaccinated to build trust.
“Today Karen and I wanted to step forward and take this vaccine to assure the American people that while we cut the red tape, we are not taking any corners,” Pence said. “Hope is on the way.”
Trump’s lack of visibility was surprising, especially for a president who is rarely shy about taking credit, said Lawrence Gostin, a Georgetown Law professor who focuses on public health.
“The president’s relatively low profile of the COVID response since the election is curious and runs counter to Mr. Trump’s own interests,” he said. Gostin, who has criticized Trump’s handling of the pandemic in the past, said he “deserves a lot of credit” for Operation Warp Speed and a bet on two vaccines that use breakthrough mRNA technology.
“He has shown leadership in vaccine development and should be proud to publicly show his confidence in COVID vaccines,” he said.
Trump appeared at a White House “summit” last week ahead of the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the Pfizer vaccine. But many Trump aides are amazed at his low profile now that the vaccine is actually being injected. They see it as a missed opportunity for the president, who is leaving office on January 20, to take credit for overseeing the rapid development and deployment of the vaccine that is expected to finally contain the virus.
Trump himself has been concerned about the creditworthiness of his successor, Biden, who will lead most of the nationwide injection campaign next year.
“Don’t let Joe Biden take credit for the vaccines,” Trump told reporters. “Don’t let him take credit for the vaccines, because the vaccines were me, and I’ve pushed people harder than ever before.”
In fact, FDA scientists were the ones who came up with the idea for Operation Warp Speed, the White House-backed effort that manufactures millions of doses of coronavirus vaccines and treatments while they are still being evaluated. And much of the foundation for the recordings has been laid over the past decade, including research on messenger RNA, or mRNA, used in the vaccines developed by both Pfizer and Moderna.
Trump’s restrained approach could have implications for public health. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, told NBC News this week that 75% to 85% of the nation must be vaccinated to achieve “herd immunity,” making the public awareness campaign about vaccine safety all the more. press more.
Trump has said he would be open to taking a vaccine. Deputy White House press secretary Brian Morgenstern told reporters that because Trump already had COVID-19, his doctors have been trying to determine when he should take it.
“When the time is right, I’m sure he’ll remain willing to take it,” he said.
According to guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there isn’t enough information yet to determine whether those who have had COVID-19, such as Trump, should receive the vaccine.
But White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany offered an alternative explanation. She told reporters this week that Trump, who has previously circulated misinformation about other vaccines, “wants to send a parallel message that, you know, the residents of our long-term care facilities and our frontline workers are of the utmost importance.”
Gostin disagreed. “It will be hugely damaging to public confidence in the vaccine if President Trump is not visibly enthusiastic, including getting his picture on national television,” he said. “It’s just not good enough to have Vice President Pence as a nominee.”
Some lawmakers have said they are reluctant to be among the first to be vaccinated so they aren’t seen as jumping. But others enthusiastically made agreements.
“Millions of Americans are waiting for shots, many of whom are workers on the front lines of this pandemic,” tweeted the Democratic Rep. Don Beyer from Virginia, who was among those who got one. “I’m no more important than them, but national leaders must lead by example.”