‘They will be constantly rewriting history:’ Donald Trump takes credit for Operation Warp Speed despite undermining COVID-19
Donald Trump and his followers praised his own leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic. Not everyone remembers history the way they do.
Trump took to Truth Social to post about his health policies back in the first Trump term. He wrote, “We’re coming up on the five-year anniversary of Covid, and if you recall, under President Trump’s leadership, we had incredible public health policies. President Trump’s unparalleled creation of Operation Warp Speed was one like we’ve never seen before!” This social media post was signed by Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, a Fox News medical contributor.
Many Twitter users were perplexed by this claim from Trump. One wrote, “We did?” One wrote, “We did.” They were evidently skeptical about Trump’s positive throwback regarding the COVID-19 response. Another user called out the lie, stating, “They will be constantly rewriting history, and holding all the levers of power will make that easier for them.”
Not as successful as they remember
Trump notably downplayed COVID-19 and compared it to a mere flu. In the earlier stages of the pandemic, Trump has also posted vaccine-skeptic tweets. A study published at Elsevier proved that Trump voters who were exposed to anti-vaccine tweets from Trump increased their vaccine concerns. Vaccines and information about COVID-19 shouldn’t have been politicized, but it was. 35% of Trump supporters were more likely to refuse vaccination. Many Republicans and Trump supporters were more susceptible to anti-vaccine misinformation. Additionally, anti-intellectual rhetoric was also tied to vaccines.
The Trump Administration did launch Operation Warp Speed. But by the time the first doses of vaccines were delivered, more than 290,000 Americans had already died. Perhaps more deaths could’ve been prevented if Trump didn’t undermine the severity of COVID-19. To remember Operation Warp Speed as a success is disingenuous to those who’ve lost loved ones because of the government’s nonchalant COVID-19 response.
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