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Former President Donald Trump just spoke out about the Covid-19 vaccination again, and Twitter users are less than pleased with the 75-year-old’s inflammatory claims he made when he called in to Fox Business last week. While Trump has never been known for his thoughtful commentary, the former president made some bold statements on the show, announcing that that when he left office, the pandemic and coronovirus “was virtually gone.”
Rather than supporting the highly suggested booster shots of the vaccination, Trump instead suggested that it was a money grab from the companies, failing to urge is supporters to get the follow-up dose. “That sounds to me like a money-making operation for Pfizer,” he said. “Think of the money involved. A booster shot, that’s tens of billions of dollars. How good of business is that? If you’re a businessman, you say, ‘You know what? Let’s give them another shot.’ That’s another $10 billion of money coming in. The whole thing is just crazy.”
Trump continued to push back against a booster shot, saying, “You wouldn’t think you would need a booster. When these first came out, they were good for life. Then they were good for a year or two. And I could see the writing on the wall, I could see the dollar signs in their eyes.” Continuing to perpetuate distrust in the medical system of America, this dangerous rhetoric is likely to raise even more concerns about the booster shot, which could potentially lead to a longer pandemic if people continue to not get vaccinated, although Trump himself is “proud” to have the shot.
With Covid cases on the rise due to the delta variant and vaccinated and unvaccinated people alike still contracting the virus, it has become increasingly important to continue wearing masks and get the vaccination in order to stop the spread. However, Trump has done very little to encourage people to get the booster, instead boasting, “When I was president you didn’t have this problem with people not wanting to take it. They don’t take it because they don’t trust Biden. And they don’t trust the Biden administration.”
It’s important to note that as of Monday the Pfizer vaccination was granted approval by the FDA for people 16 years of age and older. While Trump did note that people who get the vaccination often end up less sick and get better much faster, his inaccurate portrayal of the booster shot could be dangerous rhetoric to continue to spread as cases rise.
