© CNN/The Young TurksCNN's Jake Tapper complaining about Biden's harsh approach to encouraging more covid vaccinations
On Thursday, President Biden delivered a speech in which he announced a six-prong plan of attack against the Delta-fueled coronavirus surge, one which included some very broad vaccine requirements, as well as one section in which he channeled the frustrations of many Americans with their anti-vaccine fellow citizens:
My message to unvaccinated Americans is this: What more is there to wait for? What more do you need to see? We've made vaccinations free, safe, and convenient. The vaccine is FDA approved. Over 200 million Americans have gotten at least one shot. We've been patient but our patience is wearing thin and your refusal has cost all of us. So, please, do the right thing. But just don't take from me. Listen to the voices of unvaccinated Americans who are lying in hospital beds taking their final breath saying, 'If only I had gotten vaccinated, if only. It's a tragedy. Please don't let it become yours.That "scolding tone" didn't sit well with Tapper, who told New Day co-anchors John Berman and Brianna Keilar that the president erred in speaking out as he did.
After reminiscing about previous episodes of widespread American belief in quackery, Tapper told his colleagues that "This is part of the American public, this is part of the ethos in this country. People don't want big government telling them what to do."
He went on to say that "I don't think scolding is the approach. There are these purveyors of misinformation out there, and they're not just on the right. Robert Kennedy Jr. is one of the most notorious ones. And I haven't seen the president or anyone say, look, people, like, he's scolding the people that are being lied to as opposed to the liars."
Biden and members of his administration have, in fact, consistently spoken out against coronavirus misinformation.
Tapper concluded by comparing the vaccine issue to the election conspiracies that sparked the Capitol insurrection, saying "And again, as with the election lie, you can get mad at the people who believe the lies, but the villains are the liars."
Comment: Tapper may have taken issue with Biden's approach, but he is fully onboard with the overall message. His beef is that Biden isn't doing enough to make people think that getting vaccinated is their own idea. The dig at Robert Kennedy Jr. is particularly egregious. Kennedy has been stalwart in the fight against deadly vaccination regimes, especially through his Children's Health Defence website.