White House's Jen Psaki had a biting response when asked if Trump should help in the vaccine effort

White House's Jen Psaki had a biting response when asked if Trump should help in the vaccine effort
Press Secretary Jen Psaki answers questions from members of the press Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021, in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Chandler West)
Media

Although former President Donald Trump and former First Lady Melania Trump were vaccinated for COVID-19 in January, according to CNN, a recent PBS/NPR/Marist poll found that 49% of Republican males do not plan on getting vaccinated. And some health experts, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, are saying that Trump should urge them to get vaccinated. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, at a news conference this week, was asked about Trump's lack of participation in recent COVID-19 awareness campaigns — and she noted that others have participated without needing an "engraved invitation."

A reporter asked Psaki if President Joe Biden would like to see Trump "get involved in his messaging" about the need to be vaccinated for COVID-19 — to which she responded, "Well, if former President Trump woke up tomorrow and wanted to be more vocal about the safety and efficacy of the campaign, of the vaccine, certainly we'd support that."

Psaki went on to say, "Every other living former president — or most of them, not all of them — has participated in public campaigns. They did not need an engraved invitation to do so. So, [Donald Trump] may decide he should do that. If so, great. But there are a lot of different ways to engage, to reach out to ensure that people of a range of political support and backing know the vaccine is safe and effective."

In a recent ad from the Ad Council, four of the United States' five living ex-presidents urged Americans to get vaccinated for COVID-19 — including Democrats Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter and Republican George W. Bush. Conspicuously absent was Donald Trump.

Understand the importance of honest news ?

So do we.

The past year has been the most arduous of our lives. The Covid-19 pandemic continues to be catastrophic not only to our health - mental and physical - but also to the stability of millions of people. For all of us independent news organizations, it’s no exception.

We’ve covered everything thrown at us this past year and will continue to do so with your support. We’ve always understood the importance of calling out corruption, regardless of political affiliation.

We need your support in this difficult time. Every reader contribution, no matter the amount, makes a difference in allowing our newsroom to bring you the stories that matter, at a time when being informed is more important than ever. Invest with us.

Make a one-time contribution to Alternet All Access, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you.

Click to donate by check.

DonateDonate by credit card
Donate by Paypal
{{ post.roar_specific_data.api_data.analytics }}
@2022 - AlterNet Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. - "Poynter" fonts provided by fontsempire.com.