Trumping the Vaccine

The misconception that vaccinations are dangerous is a topic that has swirled through the public for years now. In a Texas A&M Survey taken between late May and June of 2020, it was found that more than 31% of the American population had no intention of getting the COVID-19 vaccine. More and more “anti—vaxxers” pop up all over the globe spreading opinions that usually have little scientific background.

Today, misinformation spreads faster than ever. Social media sites like Twitter and Facebook are just beginning to crack down on paid advertisements that masquerade as news stories. This comes as a relief as social media users have perpetuated false narratives for years.

One of these perpetrators who spreads “Fake News” is former president Donald Trump. The Washington Post reports that Trump spread over 30,000 falsehoods as an active president — most of them coming from his last year in office. The cruel display of leadership came to a screeching halt when news broke that Mr. Trump and his wife had, in fact, received a COVID-19 vaccination in January 2021.

In Oct. 2020, former President Trump and former first lady Melania Trump broke the news that they had contracted COVID-19. After Trump had spent months comparing the disease to “the common flu”— he caught it. “It’s going to disappear. One day it’s like a miracle — it will disappear,” Trump said during a White House press conference on February 27, 2020. The opposite couldn’t be more true.

As of March 2021, 523,000 Americans have died as a result of COVID-19. It comes as no surprise since Trump shelved the playbook for global pandemics in Jan. 2020, that the Obama-era administration left him. Trump’s bolstering ego and desire to be loved by the American public outweighed his sense of morality.

After months of downplaying the virus and casting health officials to the side to serve his own purpose, he had the audacity to keep his own vaccination a secret. Trump’s loyal followers, who represent the America that was 50+ years ago, are by far the most wary of the vaccine — claiming that it will be “mandatory” and used for surveillance over the American public.

With Trump publicly supporting these falsehoods from his supporters, and mocking Dr. Fauci among others who were ready to spring into action regarding COVID-19 to begin with, this becomes a major problem. The decision to privately vaccinate himself and his wife Melania is a serious slap in the face to our healthcare workers and those who have tirelessly fought COVID-19 since day one.

I have personally lost two of my dear friends to COVID-19. One of them was a diehard Trump supporter, who at the end of his life came to regret all of the decisions he made regarding COVID-19 and Trump himself.

I think loss is something the American public has learned more about over the last year than they should ever have to. With current president Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and former Vice President Mike Pence all getting COVID-19 vaccinations in the public view, the news of Trump skulking within the White House back in January to receive his fills me with ire.

Not only do Trump’s false claims about COVID-19 deserve the most strife; his attitude toward the entire pandemic is careless. He didn’t deserve a vaccination when so many are truly at their wits end with this pandemic.

How many Americans haven’t hugged a loved one in months because of the pandemic?

How many more have to struggle because of the callous nature of one man? Too many people are suffering from this virus. Whether it be emotionally, physically, or mentally, the American public has paid their dues.

Mr. Trump in no way has even come close to paying any sort of dues, rather, he spent his time in the White House boasting about how “under control” the virus was. Yet when the going gets tough, he vaccinates in secret and throws his loyal followers to the wolves.

Trump's ego and his lack of wherewithal regarding human compassion proved to be a deadly combination for the American public. We have been the ones who have had to suffer because of the cowardice of one man who didn’t believe in the virus in the first place.

For more information on COVID-19, visit the CDC website, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

The Corsair