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President Joe Biden on Monday said local experts’ statements on COVID-19 vaccinations are more important than anything former President Donald Trump could say.
His comments came after Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. government’s top infectious-disease expert, said on Sunday that he wished Trump would use his popularity among Republicans to persuade his supporters to get vaccinated.
“I discussed it with my team, and they say the thing that has more impact than anything Trump can say to the MAGA folks is what the local doctor, what the local preachers, what the local people in the community say,” said Biden, as he responded to a reporter’s question after giving a short speech on Democrats’ $1.9 trillion relief package.
“So I urge all local docs and ministers and priests to talk about why it’s important to get that vaccine.”
In his speech on the aid package, Biden talked about how it’s helping to deliver “shots in arms and money in pockets.”
The U.S. reached 100 million COVID vaccine doses administered on Friday, and $1,400 stimulus payments began to arrive over the weekend. Most Americans are expected to get a direct deposit or check for $1,400 by the end of the month, with many of the payments hitting this Wednesday.
Biden also said Gene Sperling, a former top economic official in the Clinton and Obama administrations, will oversee the implementation of the relief package, known as American Rescue Plan.
U.S. stocks traded modestly higher on Monday afternoon after the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.53% and S&P 500 SPX, +0.65% scored record closes on Friday.
