Donald Trump Encourages 'Everybody' To Get A COVID-19 Vaccine

Trump identified what his administration did in helping ensure the vaccine was available by the end of 2020. Even then-president-elect Joe Biden received it.

"We took care of a lot of people — including, I guess, on December 21st, we took care of Joe Biden because he got his shot, he got his vaccine," Trump said.

The former president noted that the shot had few side effects.

"It shows you how unpainful that vaccine shot is." ... "So everybody, go get your shot," Trump added.

Trump said that he and his administration created the vaccine plan, and that Biden is following it, ensuring Americans receive their inoculations. 

"Never forget that we did it," Trump told attendees. "Never let them take the credit because they don't deserve the credit. They just followed, they're following our plan... Joe Biden is only implementing the plan that we put in place."

According to a Time report, President Biden created a new plan to vaccinate Americans faster, which included purchasing additional doses.

The U.S. government purchased 200 million more vaccines from both Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech. The goal is to have enough vaccines available so that every American can get one by the end of summer 2021. 

Andy Slavitt, a senior advisor to the White House COVID-19 response team, noted that Biden did not inherit a fully developed plan. He said that the strategy and infrastructure to get the shots into Americans' arms did not exist when the Biden administration took over in January. 

Axios reported that both Trump and his wife, Melania received the COVID-19 vaccine in January before he left office. The former first couple did not receive the vaccine on camera, like former Vice President Mike Pence and former Second Lady Karen Pence. 

Trump's speech at the CPAC is the first time he has actively encouraged "everybody" to seek the shot. The outlet noted that Republicans have a higher instance of vaccine hesitancy, so the former president's endorsement could be critical for convincing people who follow him to get vaccinated for COVID-19.