US President-elect Joe Biden received a Covid-19 vaccine live on television Monday in a campaign to boost Americans’ confidence in the jabs — and in marked contrast to President Donald Trump’s mixed messaging.
The 78-year-old incoming president got the Pfizer vaccine at the Christiana Hospital in Newark, Delaware. His wife Jill received the shot earlier, the presidential transition team said. Biden told Americans “there’s nothing to worry about” when they get vaccinated and that in the meantime they should keep wearing masks and “listen to the experts”. He said he was “looking forward” to the follow-up. Biden praised “the scientists and the people who put this together — frontline workers, people who were the ones who actually did the clinical work.” He called medical workers “amazing and incredible.” He and the future first lady were the latest high-profile political figures publicly joining the first wave of vaccinations aimed at stopping a pandemic that has killed almost 318,000 Americans.
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and her husband will be vaccinated next week. Meanwhile, the serving vice president, Mike Pence, and his wife got vaccinations last week. Donald Trump, however, has yet to take part in the drive. However, he has done little, even in terms of issuing statements, to support the campaign to overcome Americans’ vaccine skepticism. His wife, Melania Trump, has also been largely absent from the issue.
