Trump implies high COVID-19 case numbers, herd immunity is ‘terrific’

Critics weren’t too thrilled with Donald Trump's response because the vaccine isn’t readily available to most Americans.

Keydra Manns

Dec 10, 2020

President Donald Trump is taking a ‘glass half full’ approach to the coronavirus pandemic.

The United States COVID-19 death toll stands at approximately 285,000 people but it appears the president is trying to stay optimistic. During a recent press conference when asked about the recent rise in cases and advice on how Americans should maneuver the Christmas holiday the president shifted the conversation to discuss the success of the vaccine and immunity.

“I think that the vaccine was our goal, that was number one, because that was the way, that was the way it ends,” said Trump at a White House coronavirus vaccine summit on Tuesday in a clip captured by Huff Post.

White House Holds COVID-19 Vaccine Summit — US President Donald Trump signed an executive at the Operation Warp Speed Vaccine Summit on December 08, 2020 in Washington, DC. The president signed an executive order stating the US would provide vaccines to Americans before aiding other nations. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

But many took issue with the president’s response because the vaccine isn’t readily available to most Americans.

Aaron Rupar a journalist at Vox, suggested the President is celebrating the success of the vaccine prematurely.

In a tweet he said,

it's sorta weird for Trump to take a coronavirus vaccine victory lap before, you know, hardly any Americans have been vaccinated https://t.co/2FqBT7qXI0
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 8, 2020

“it’s sorta weird for Trump to take a coronavirus vaccine victory lap before, you know, hardly any Americans have been vaccinated,” Rupar tweeted.

At the conference, Trump added, “Plus, you do have an immunity, you develop immunity over a period of time, and I hear we’re close to 15%, I’m hearing that, and that is terrific. That’s a very powerful vaccine in itself and just tremendous progress has been made.”

Cases have shown that someone can become reinfected after catching the virus, so it’s unclear what the president meant by that statement.

According to Axios, “What we understand is 90 to 100% of people who are infected with the coronavirus do develop an antibody response,” said Maria Van Kerkhove, the head of the World Health Organization’s emerging diseases and zoonosis unit.

According to Johns Hopkins University, the United States has 15 million confirmed cases of the virus.

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