untitled design

Trump criticizes politicians who do not reveal having taken a booster dose against Covid

Former US President Donald Trump lashed out at Florida Governor Ron DeSantis over his refusal to publicly report whether he received a booster dose of the Covid-19 vaccine in a new interview with the far-right channel. One America News.

Trump – who announced at an event the previous month that he received a booster dose in addition to the two doses of the coronavirus immunization – has discredited “cowardly” politicians who have refused to be transparent about their own vaccination status.

His comments come just weeks after DeSantis deflected a question about immunization in a December appearance on Fox Business — an answer his team says was given as a “private medical matter.”

The former president doesn’t hide his frustration with DeSantis during private conversations with supporters and allies. DeSantis has drawn Trump’s ire after publicly ruling out a 2024 presidential bid in a GOP primary that also includes the former president.

“I watched some politicians being interviewed and one of the questions was, ‘Did you get the booster? because they are cowards,” Trump told the OAN.

“You have to say it,” he added. “Whether you took it or not.”

I watched some politicians being interviewed and one of the questions was, “Did you get the booster?”, because they had the vaccine, and they were answering like – in other words, the answer was “yes”, but they don’t want to say, because they are cowards (…) You have to say if you took it or not.

Donald Trump, in an interview with One America News

DeSantis told Fox Business presenter Maria Bartimoro in December that he “did what he did, the normal vaccination” when asked if he received a third dose of Covid-19 immunizations. The rest of his response focused on opposing mandatory vaccination mandates as governor, saying the coronavirus vaccine and possible extra doses should be “individual decisions”.

On Tuesday, DeSantis declined to mention the word “vaccine” in a 30-minute speech at the US State Department. Instead, it declared Florida “the freest state among this United States” and “an escape route for those angered by authoritarian, arbitrary, and seemingly endless mandates and restrictions.”

Like many other states, Florida has recently seen a new wave of Covid infections and a sharp rise in hospitalizations among the unvaccinated.

DeSantis has already touted the vaccine’s arrival as a turning point in the pandemic.

In early 2021, he was involved in bringing the vaccine to elderly communities in the state. As eligibility for vaccination extended to younger groups, where vaccine resistance was firmer and louder among conservative groups, DeSantis perceptibly shifted his stance.

Unlike many political leaders, including within his own party, he refused to be vaccinated on camera. His office discreetly confirmed in April that he had received the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine, and his communications team declined to say whether he received the booster, insisting it would be private medical information.

Rather than publicly encouraging vaccines and boosters, DeSantis has focused on alternative treatments, such as monoclonal antibodies, and opposing federal vaccination mandates.

In a note sent to CNN On Wednesday, DeSantis spokeswoman Christina Pushaw said it was unclear whether Trump was referring to the Florida Republican in his criticism.

“President Trump did not mention Governor DeSantis in the interview, so I would not make any assumptions. The governor has always been very clear in his position on vaccines and boosters for Covid-19: vaccines must be available to everyone, but mandatory for no one, and the choice to take them is an individual and private medical decision,” he said. Pushaw.

Both politicians have expressed interest in the White House, although DeSantis has publicly maintained that his only objective at the moment is to secure re-election in November for a second term as governor. Meanwhile, Trump mulled over picking DeSantis to be his running mate if he makes a comeback offer in 2024 and said he would easily “defeat” the Florida governor in a Republican primary.

“I would beat him just like I would beat anyone,” the former US president told Yahoo Finance in October.

This content was originally created in English.

original version

Reference: CNN Brasil

You may also like

Get the latest

Stay Informed: Get the Latest Updates and Insights

 

Most popular