CNN’s Jake Tapper is pressing Jeff Zients, the White House COVID-19 response coordinator, on whether President Joe Biden is being “overly cautious” with wearing masks in certain settings.
Tapper asked Zients, “Is it really necessary for a fully vaccinated person to wear a mask at a limited indoor gathering if everyone there is vaccinated?”
Zients responded, “The CDC has given guidance that when you’re with family and friends that are vaccinated in small groups, you don’t need a mask.”
Tapper continued to question Zients on why Biden “in a room full of vaccinated journalists, with everybody in that room, vaccinated” needs to wear a mask.
Explaining Biden is going to continue to follow CDC guidance, Zients explained the administration wants to get Americans vaccinated and “the July 4 deadline… is a really good goal that the president has set of 70% of all Americans with at least their first shot by July 4.”
Watch his interview below:
The CNN host argued “one of the reasons why journalists are annoyingly harping on this, and some health experts are, is because there is a light at end of the tunnel, and President Biden being able to take off his mask in a room full of journalists and White House staffers, all of whom are fully vaccinated, is a demonstration that the vaccines work.”
He added, “I think the concern is that by being overly cautious the signal is going out to the public that there isn’t necessarily a light at the end of the tunnel.”
Acknowledging Americans are “tired” and “wearing a mask can be a pain,” Zients suggested, “The light at the end of the tunnel is brighter and brighter. Let’s keep up our guard, let’s follow the CDC guidance.”
Zients told Tapper the CDC guidance will eventually allow fully vaccinated Americans more privileges.
