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The United States set another daily record for new coronavirus cases on Friday, topping 184,000, while Donald Trump promised imminent distribution of a vaccine, except for New York, which he threatened to shut out for political reasons, and President-elect Joe. Biden. , pleaded with the Americans to follow basic mitigation measures.
According to Johns Hopkins University, there were 184,514 new cases on Friday, up from 153,496 on Thursday. More than 10.7 million cases have been recorded in total and more than 244,000 people have died. Deaths are also on the rise: 1,431 were recorded on Friday, the highest number in 10 days, if more than a thousand less than the highest number of its kind, as of April.
At the White House, in his first remarks since losing the election to Biden, Trump said he expected a vaccine developed by Pfizer to receive authorization for emergency use “extremely soon” and to be available to the general population in April.
He also said that the federal government would not deliver the vaccine to New York, because its governor, Andrew Cuomo, “does not trust where the vaccine comes from.” Trump and Cuomo have clashed frequently during the pandemic.
Cuomo told MSNBC: “Nothing he said is true, surprise surprise. We are all excited about the possibilities of a vaccine. “
Trump also shot Pfizer, saying that its statement that it was not part of Operation Warp Speed, the federal vaccine effort, was “an unfortunate misinterpretation.” Pfizer did not receive support for the research or manufacture of the vaccine, but agreed to sell its vaccine to the federal government. A spokeswoman said the company was proud to be part of Operation Warp Speed ”as a supplier of a possible Covid-19 vaccine.”
If Trump’s schedule for the Pfizer vaccine sticks, it will be out of power by the time it is distributed to the general population. Trump has not conceded defeat to Biden and is posing legal challenges to the results in the battle states. But he has little to no chance of success and Biden will take office as the 46th president in Washington on January 20.
Preparing for the Wilmington, Delaware government, Biden appointed his own Covid task force. On Friday, a member, Dr. Celine Grounder, alluded to the delays in providing national security briefings to Biden caused by Trump’s refusal to relent when she told CNN that the virus was now “essentially a national security threat. “. [because] Americans are getting infected and getting sick from the coronavirus, dying from the coronavirus, and how the economy is being affected by the coronavirus. “
Shortly before Trump spoke, Biden issued a statement with a remarkably presidential tone.
“The crisis does not respect the calendar dates,” he said. “It is speeding up right now.
“I renew my call to all Americans, regardless of where they live or who they voted for, to step up and do their part in social distancing, hand washing and wearing masks.”
With winter approaching, socialization indoors and the number of cases reaching the levels regularly warned by Dr. Anthony Fauci, a highly trusted public health expert with whom Trump has regularly clashed, states across the Midwest Republican are struggling a lot. Hospital resources are running out and governors have asked for help.
“It’s on fire,” Ohio Governor Mike DeWine told the Wall Street Journal. “We have never seen anything like this. Our spring wave and our summer wave were nothing like this. “
Another Republican, Doug Bergum of North Dakota, ordered a statewide mask mandate and imposed trade restrictions. In Nevada, Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak tested positive.
Elsewhere, the governors of New Mexico and Oregon have ordered strict social restraints. Imposing a stay-at-home order for two weeks, Michelle Lujan Grisham, Democratic Governor of New Mexico, said: “We are in a life-and-death situation, and if we don’t act right now, we can’t preserve lives, we can’t keep saving. lives, and we will absolutely crush our current healthcare system and infrastructure.
On the East Coast, New York could close public schools on Monday, while Ned Lamont, the Connecticut governor, went into quarantine after an aide tested positive.
On the national stage, Trump said: “Ideally, we don’t go to a lockdown. I will not go, this administration will not go to a shutdown. Hopefully, whatever happens in the future, who knows what administration it will be.
“I suppose time will tell. But I can tell you that this administration will not be closed.”
Biden has vowed to follow the scientists’ advice on the new social restrictions, although he pushed back an initial statement that he would revert to a general lockdown if so advised. Supports a national mask mandate.
Several dozen U.S. Secret Service agents have contracted the virus, likely as a result of staffing events at the White House and in the election campaign in which mitigation measures were not enforced. Trump, members of his family, members of the Cabinet and senior advisers, and top Republicans all tested positive. In September, the president spent three days in the hospital.
A scientific model predicts more than 400,000 deaths for March. Two weeks ago, in an interview with the Washington Post, Fauci warned of a winter of more than 100,000 new cases a day and said the country was suffering “a lot of damage.” Now the US has recorded more than 100,000 cases a day for 10 days in a row.
