After an increasing outcry from public health professionals and President-elect Joe Biden about the alarmingly slow rollout of Covid-19 shots into the arms of Americans, President Donald Trump appeared to pre-emptively redirect the blame onto state governments, who he claimed bore the responsibility for ensuring actual inoculations.

In mid-December HHS Secretary Alex Azar had promised that 20 million Americans will have received a first dose of the two-part Pfizer or Moderna coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year. That was itself a huge rollback from Azar’s October prediction of 100 million doses by the end of December. But as of Tuesday morning, the CDC reported just two million of the 11 million doses distributed around the country have actually been administered.

“It is up to the States to distribute the vaccines once brought to the designated areas by the Federal Government,” Trump claimed.  before not-so-subtly hitting the states one more time and throwing in a non sequitur attack at Biden. “We have not only developed the vaccines, including putting up money to move the process along quickly, but gotten them to the states. Biden failed with Swine Flu!

It is up to the States to distribute the vaccines once brought to the designated areas by the Federal Government. We have not only developed the vaccines, including putting up money to move the process along quickly, but gotten them to the states. Biden failed with Swine Flu!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 29, 2020

Just last week, however, with the vaccine rollout just barely begun, Trump was singing a very different tune. Instead of ducking responsibility for a sluggish rollout, he was taking credit for vaccine distribution, which he said was “going very smoothly,” and also touted “amazing how many people are being vaccinated, record numbers.”

“They said it couldn’t be done!!!” Trump shot back at his critics, who now have a growing case that “it” has not yet been done.

Distribution of both vaccines is going very smoothly. Amazing how many people are being vaccinated, record numbers. Our Country, and indeed the World, will soon see the great miracle of what the Trump Administration has accomplished. They said it couldn’t be done!!!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2020

The post Donald Trump Now Blames States for Sluggish Covid Vaccine Administration — Just One Week After Taking Credit for 'Record Number' of Inoculations first appeared on Mediaite.

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