Fauci ‘Strongly’ Recommends That Biden Receive COVID Vaccine ASAP ‘For Security Reasons’

Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Anthony Fauci, testifies in front of the Senate on September 23, 2020. (Photo by GRAEME JENNINGS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House’s COVID-19 expert and President-elect Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser, said on Tuesday morning that Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris ought to receive the vaccine for COVID-19 as soon as possible.

“This a person who very soon will be the president of the United States. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will very soon be the vice president of the United States,” Fauci told “Good Morning America” anchor George Stephanopoulos.

“For security reasons, I really feel strongly that we should get them vaccinated as soon as we possibly can,” the doctor continued. “You want [Biden] fully protected as he enters into the presidency in January, so that would be my strong recommendation.”

Fauci also recommended that President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence get vaccinated as well.

“You still want to protect people who are very important to our country right now,” he said, adding that while Trump “likely” has antibodies after getting infected with the virus several months ago, “we’re not sure how long that protection lasts.”

A few weeks ago, Fauci revealed that he had accepted Biden’s offer to be chief medical adviser and to remain on the White House’s COVID-19 response team after Trump, who has largely kept Fauci on the sidelines, departs.

Latest News

Notable Replies

  1. Yes, and publicly on all networks. Let everyone see it done. Been saying this for a week now and not just Biden but as public officials and celebrities that people trust begin taking the vaccine, let it be witnessed. Especially should Kamala take the vaccine, as it is said (not seeing any statistics on it yet) that people of color are reluctant to consider this, given some really bad history with vaccines among the Blacks in the early 1900s.

    If Biden wants to defeat the virus, get some skin in this game too (in addition to the GA runoffs) and go public with the injection. It could go a long way to get more (not all) people to take this.

  2. No doubt, for sure

  3. Avatar for paulw paulw says:

    You know that a trump loyalist is going to try to infect them, even if they weren’t already at risk from the secret service and other folks.

  4. Isn’t this a given?

  5. Now. Today. No time to waste.

    And Madam Vice President Elect too.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

33 more replies

Participants

Avatar for discobot Avatar for paulw Avatar for ajm Avatar for srfromgr Avatar for leftcoastindie Avatar for teenlaqueefa Avatar for becca656 Avatar for karlsgems Avatar for dickweed Avatar for fiftygigs Avatar for triletter Avatar for crewman6 Avatar for no_w_fan Avatar for tena Avatar for fuadreviez Avatar for edhedh Avatar for birdford Avatar for socalista Avatar for erik_t Avatar for godwit Avatar for txlawyer Avatar for mtw Avatar for Akimbo Avatar for Mikebeee

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: