Trump strikes skeptical tone on his own Covid vaccine record, policies

President Donald Trump on Monday shot holes in the COVID-19 vaccine accomplishments of his first term, posting on Truth Social that, "They [Pfizer] show me GREAT numbers and results, but they don’t seem to be showing them to many others. I want them to show them NOW, to CDC and the public, and clear up this MESS, one way or the other!!! I hope OPERATION WARP SPEED was as “BRILLIANT” as many say it was. If not, we all want to know about it."

Trump's support of his own vaccine

Trump has been reticent to show any dissatisfaction with Operation Warp Speed, which was announced in 2020 and produced the COVID-19 vaccine in short-order at the onset of the pandemic in 2021, and for the last half-decade, has declined to refer to the public-private partnership as anything other than a success. 

He frequently highlighted the unprecedented speed of development, which produced the vaccine in under nine months as opposed to the typical five to ten years. Trump also repeated claims of the effectiveness of the vaccines and the program’s role in allegedly saving millions of lives. He credited the program’s success to his administration’s funding (over $18 billion, including $10 billion redirected from hospital funds), deregulation, and partnerships with private companies like Pfizer and Moderna. 

As recently as August 28 in his cabinet meeting at the White House, Trump touted the vaccine, citing it as a "medical miracle" that saved millions of lives. "Operation Warp Speed people say is one of the greatest achievements ever in politics or in the military ... Everybody, including Putin, said that 'Operation Warp Speed, what you did with that, nobody could believe it.' We did a great job."

Not very cult-like, Trump's base disagrees

While his detractors criticize his base for being in lock-step with the president on all issues, even going as far as calling them a "MAGA Cult," even his most ardent supporters have abandoned the notion that the vaccines were "safe and effective." 

Trump's fidelity to the positive vaccine messaging has been at odds not only with his base, but also with many of his own health officials, notably his Health and Human Services director, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., highlighting a rift within the administration, with most of Trump's base siding with Kennedy. 

Kennedy, who has been skeptical of many modern vaccines and their outcomes, has been equally critical of the COVID-19 vaccines, which utilized mRNA technology.

Earlier in August, Kennedy announced that his department is canceling 22 mRNA vaccine development contracts, totaling roughly $500 million. 

"After reviewing the science, and consulting top experts at [National Institutes of Health] and [Food and Drug Administration], HHS has determined that mRNA technology poses more risks than benefits for these respiratory viruses,” RFK said in a video posted to X.

In November 2020, Pfizer released a statement sharing the results of its COVID-19 vaccine trials, stating that its vaccine was "95% effective against COVID-19 beginning 28 days after the first dose."

Fresh questions on "safe and effective"

A Canadian watchdog group, the National Citizens Inquiry (NCI), published a report concluding that COVID-19 vaccines were "neither safe nor effective," citing flaws in the authorization mechanism that allowed approvals without standard clinical trial data. The report highlighted concerns about adverse effects and efficacy, alleging that the rushed process compromised public safety. 

Further, a lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton against Pfizer, which is ongoing, alleges that far from the 95% figure, the Pfizer vaccine is less than 1% effective.  

Trump, who asserts that he's hearing different data and statistics from the vaccine manufacturers versus what they are telling the public, continued in his Truth Social post, "It is very important that the Drug Companies justify the success of their various Covid Drugs. Many people think they are a miracle that saved Millions of lives. Others disagree!"

"With CDC being ripped apart over this question, I want the answer, and I want it NOW. I have been shown information from Pfizer, and others, that is extraordinary, but they never seem to show those results to the public. Why not???"

Trump and Kennedy's unusual partnership

While Trump and Kennedy's views on matters like climate and the environment vary greatly, since Kennedy's Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) merged with Trump's Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, the two have had a surprisingly drama-free relationship. 

In an interview with Tucker Carlson in June, Kennedy told Carlson, "I had him pegged as a narcissist, but narcissists are incapable of empathy. And he's one of the most empathetic people that I've met." 

"He's immensely curious and inquisitive. And immensely knowledgeable. He's encyclopedic in certain areas," he continued. 

Kennedy's alignment with Trump came at considerable personal cost to him. Members of the Kennedy family called the former independent presidential candidate's 2024 endorsement of Trump a "betrayal."