Forget 100 days, 100 million doses.
Forget the mantra that we will "defeat COVID.”
Forget any notion of an end in sight to the ridiculous germaphobic path we’ve careened down for the past year.
President Joe Biden indicated Thursday that despite the presence of a vaccine that is (slowly but surely) being rolled out across the country, Americans can expect to be wearing face masks for the next year. You know, to “save lives.”
Speaking to NIH officials, Biden alleged that “It’s critically important...you know that wearing this mask, through the next year here, can save lives. A significant number of lives.”
President Biden: “It’s critically important … you know that wearing this mask, through the next year here, can save lives.”
— The Recount (@therecount) February 11, 2021
“A significant number of lives.” pic.twitter.com/PI0C6HF8AW
Biden, who ran his campaign largely on criticism of Trump’s handling of the COVID pandemic and asserting that he himself had a “plan” to “defeat COVID,” has come under fire for backtracking on his earlier claims in just the first few weeks – in fact, days – of his presidency. Less than one week after taking office, the president admitted that “there’s nothing we can do to change the trajectory of the pandemic in the next several months,” reiterating that Americans must put up with COVID measures for just a short while longer – a timeline that apparently extends through at least the next full year.