The public recently found out that former President Donald Trump and former first lady Melania Trump received the COVID-19 vaccine. But, Dr. Anthony Fauci believes it was a “lost opportunity” they were not inoculated publicly.
Fauci revealed during a CNN interview on Wednesday evening that he was “not aware” of Donald Trump receiving the COVID-19 vaccine at the White House.
The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Fauci, noted that Donald Trump is “very, very popular” among his supporters.
He indicated that Donald Trump receiving the vaccine publicly “would have been an extraordinarily good opportunity to get a signal to the people who have clearly listened to him,” adding, “He has a great deal of influence.”
“It was, unfortunately, a lost opportunity because he could have gotten a lot of people who are hesitant about getting vaccinated, vaccinated,” Fauci said. “I’m sorry he didn’t do that.”
Fauci was a member of the White House coronavirus task force during the Trump administration. He is now the chief medical adviser to the president under Biden’s administration.
Watch the video below:
Dr. Anthony Fauci says he was not aware at the time that then-President Trump received the Covid-19 vaccine at the White House.
— CNN (@CNN) March 4, 2021
“It was, unfortunately, a lost opportunity because he could have gotten a lot of people who are hesitant about getting vaccinated, vaccinated.” pic.twitter.com/r6ycNph1TS
It was publicly revealed on Monday that Donald Trump and Melania Trump received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in January while at the White House. They have since received the second dose.
This came after the two previously contracted the virus in October 2020.
Donald Trump urged Americans to get the vaccine during his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Sunday.
“This was us. We did this. And the distribution is moving along, according to our plan. And it’s moving along really well,” Trump said at CPAC in Orlando, Florida.
He added, “But remember, we took care of a lot of people, including, I guess on Dec. 21, we took care of Joe Biden. ‘Cause he got his shot. He got his vaccine. He forgot. It shows you how un-painful all that vaccine shot is. So everybody go get your shot.”