Remarks by President Biden on Fighting the COVID-⁠19 Pandemic
AUGUST 03, 2021
Location: Not determined

These vaccine donations from America are free.  We’re not selling them.  There are no demands, no conditions, no coercion attached.  And there is no favoritism and no strings attached.  We’re doing this to save lives and to end this pandemic.  That’s it.

In fact, we’re donating vaccines to countries that have real issues — we have real issues with.

And we’ll continue to give tens of millions of the doses away across the summer and work to increase U.S. manufacturing and manufacturing of vaccines around the world as well.

And it’s not just vaccines.  We are continuing to provide
countries with — in need — with more testing, protective equipment, and personnel to stem the surge of the virus.  We’ve done it in India and elsewhere.

Let me close with this.  I’ve said before: In the race for the 21st century between democracies and autocracies, we need to prove that democracies can deliver. 

And the democracies of the world are looking to America to lead again — in two ways.  First, to demonstrate we can control this virus at home.  And second, to show we can help address it around the world.

Vaccinate America and help vaccinate the world — that’s how we’re about to beat this thing.

We’re always going to have enough doses for every American who wants one.  Our work in donating vaccines to the world is about America following through on our promises and delivering what we say we’ll deliver.

It’s showing how American science and technology, American businesses and academia, and our government can all work together.

Above all, it’s proving democracies can deliver and, yet again, that America is back leading the world — not by the example of our power, but by the power of our example.

We still have a lot of work to do.  So if you’re unvaccinated, please, please, please get the shot. 

But just don’t take it from me.  Just read the news.  Listen to the voices of the unvaccinated patients in the hospital.  They are spending [sending] the most powerful message to their families and everyone around the world — a powerful message to everybody.  As they’re lying in bed, many dying from COVID-19, they’re asking, “Doc, can I get the vaccine?”  The doctors have to look them in the eye and say, “No, sorry.  It’s too late.”

Right now, too many people are dying or watching a loved one dying and saying, “If I just got vaccinated.  If I just…”

Folks, this is isn’t about politics.  The virus doesn’t care if you’re a Democrat or a Republican.  This is about life and death.  Life and death.

I can’t say it any more plainly than this: The vaccine saves lives, and it could save yours or your child’s.
You know, I know we can do this.  We’re the United States of America.  We’re prepared like never before.  We have the tools and the resources to save lives at home and around the world. 

This is who we are.  This is what we do.  This is why there’s no nation like us on Earth.

God bless you all.  And may God protect our troops. 

And I’ll take a few questions.

Q    Mr. President, I have a question for you on coronavirus, but first I’d like to start with the news of the day — given, back in March, you said that if the investigation confirmed the allegations against Governor Cuomo, then he should resign.  So, will you now call on him to resign, given the investigators said the 11 women were credible?

THE PRESIDENT:  I stand by that statement. 

Q    Are you now calling on him to resign?

THE PRESIDENT:  Yes.

Q    And if he doesn’t resign, do you believe he should be impeached and removed from office?

THE PRESIDENT:  Let’s take one thing at a time here.  I think he should resign.

Q    Do you think —

THE PRESIDENT:  I understand that the state legislature may decide to impeach.  I don’t know that for a fact; I’ve not read all that data. 

Q    And he’s using a photo of you embracing him in his self-defense to say that these are commonplace kind of embraces that he made in the allegations against him.  Do you condone that?

THE PRESIDENT:  Look, I’m not going to flyspeck this.  I’m sure there are some embraces that were totally innocent, but app- — apparently, the Attorney General decided there were things that weren’t. 

Q    And on coronavirus, if I could ask you a question about the evictions.

THE PRESIDENT:  Why don’t you come up and take the platform?  (Laughter.) 

Q    No, thank you. 

On the evictions and the moratorium that lapsed on Saturday night: What is your strategy to prevent potentially millions of people from being evicted from their homes, given what we are told your administration is considering — a targeted moratorium — is likely to face legal challenges?

THE PRESIDENT:  Any call for a moratorium based on the Supreme Court recent decision is likely to face obstacles.  I’ve indicated to the CDC I’d like them to look at other alternatives than the one that is in pow- — in existence, which the Court has declared they’re not going to allow to continue.  And the CDC will have something to announce to you in the next hour to two hours.

Q    Thank you.

Q    President Biden, on overseas coronavirus vaccines: Should other high-income countries follow the lead of the United States and increase donations to low- and middle-income countries? 

THE PRESIDENT:  I think those countries that have been able to cover their population and have the ability to provide either dollars and/or vaccine for the 100 or so na- — poor nations that need help should do so.  We had that discussion at the G7.  A number of those countries said they were going to do that.  Some have followed through. 

The point I was making is, though, I’ve kept the commitment — we’ve kept the commitment that we would do what we said, which is more than all the rest of the countries combined thus far.

Q    Mr. President, do you believe that Governor DeSantis and Governor Abbott are personally making decisions that are harming their own citizens?

THE PRESIDENT:  I believe the results of their decisions are not good for their constituents.  And it’s clear to me and to most of the medical experts that the decisions being made, like not allowing mask mandates in school and the like, are bad health policy — bad health policy.

Q    Mr. President, I have a question about something that you just said.

THE PRESIDENT:  I’m sure you do.

Q    Thank you.  You just said there is no wall high enough and no ocean wide enough to protect us from the virus.  So what is the thinking behind letting untested and unvaccinated migrants cross the southern border into U.S. cities in record numbers?

THE PRESIDENT:  There is — what we’re doing — we have not withdrawn the order that is sometimes critical — criticized — saying that unvaccinated people should be — go back across the border. 

But unaccompanied children is a different story, because there’s — that’s the most humane thing to do is to test them and to treat them and not send them back alone.

Q    Mr. President, have you spoken with Governor Cuomo today?

THE PRESIDENT:  I have not.

Q    And then one other question on the virus.  You just said we have — we have to continue our aggressive efforts to get the unvaccinated vaccinated.  Other countries have found a lot of success in requiring vaccines in public places.  New York City just announced today that they’ll require vaccines for restaurants and gyms.  Do you think more cities and states should institute rules like that?

THE PRESIDENT:  I do.

Q    And are you going to publicly call on them?  Should they institute a vaccine passport-type system, or it’s up to each city and state to figure that out on their own?

THE PRESIDENT:  I’m sorry.  What did you say?

Q    Do you think that they should institute a vaccine passport-type system or some sort of verification to use public spaces?

THE PRESIDENT:  I don’t think they need to do that.  I think they just need to give the authority of those restaurants or businesses to say, “In order to come in, you have to give proof that you’ve been vaccinated or you can’t come in.”

I’ll take a couple more.

Q    Mr. President can I ask you about news of the day — one more on Governor Cuomo?  You’re calling for him to resign now.  My question is: Do you think he should be prosecuted?  And what is your message to the women who have now accused him of sexually harassing them and abusing them?

THE PRESIDENT:  Look, what I said was: If the investigation of the Attorney General concluded that the allegations were correct, that — back in March — that I would recommend he resign.  That’s what I’m doing today.  I’ve not read the report.  I don’t know the detail of it.  All I know is the end result.

Q    Mr. President, a question on COVID, if I could, really quickly.  It’s the eviction moratorium.  Can you explain a little bit more why it took so long to have a possible eviction moratorium be put into place?  There was — there are people — this expired on Saturday.  I’m wondering — there are folks who are saying it took too long for this to happen.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, look, the courts made it clear that the existing moratorium was not constitutional; it wouldn’t stand.  And they made that clear back in, I guess, July 15th or July 18th. 

In the meantime, what I’ve been pushing for and calling for is we have billions of dollars that were given to states to provide for rent and utilities for those people who can’t afford to stay in their homes because they can’t — an apartment — they can’t pay their rent.  And so, we’re urging them to distribute those funds to the landlords.  I believe that would take care of the vast majority of what needs to be done to keep people in their — in their ho- — in their apartments now. 

And so that’s what we’re working on.  Some states have done it and some communities have, but they have not.  The money is there.  It’s not — we don’t have to send it out.  It’s been sent out to the states and counties — billions of dollars — for the express purpose of providing for back rent and rent for the people who are in the middle of this crisis.  And that’s there; that’s what we’re pushing now.  And we’ve been pushing that.  That’s the immediate thing to do.

I’ll take one more question.