Nearly 3,000 people have died from COVID-19 since the start of November, and as cases continue to spike nationwide the need grows more dire for the Trump and incoming Biden administrations to strategize, particularly when it comes to vaccine distribution and potential federal health mandates.
However, the Trump administration’s unwillingness to begin steps to transition power to President-elect Joe Biden is preventing him from creating a national response, said Kathleen Sebelius, former United States Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Barack Obama.
“Where we will be on the 20th of January could be very, very scary,” Sebelius told Cheddar.
“What is already a daunting task for the vice president, is made considerably harder by the inability of the transition team to have a handoff of knowledge: to get inside agencies, to talk to the coronavirus task force that Donald Trump set up, to look at what the logistics plans are to begin working with governors on a vaccination plan.”
Although transitioning into the White House has been made difficult by the incumbent, the Biden administration has begun setting his plans in motion to tackle the coronavirus pandemic. The former vice president has already appointed key figures to his administration that have experience in handling pandemics, including chief of staff pick Ron Klain.
Largely critical of the president’s coronavirus response, Sebelius still praised the Trump administration’s ability to get behind a program that has yielded, so far, two potential vaccines.
With Moderna and Pfizer both on track to apply for emergency use approval of their promising COVID-19 vaccines, the need to coordinate distribution plans between administrations is evident.
Sebelius noted that many large-scale steps will be needed for this "massive" undertaking and added that “having the Trump administration refuse to share information with Joe Biden’s team, not giving them governors’ plans, not telling them what logistics have been set up, is really criminal.”
Rep. John Moolenaar has requested an urgent briefing from the White House after Trump supported a deal giving Americans a majority stake in TikTok.
A new report finds the Department of Government Efficiency’s remaking of the federal workforce has battered the Washington job market and put more households in the metropolitan area in financial distress.
A new poll finds U.S. adults are more likely than they were a year ago to think immigrants in the country legally benefit the economy. That comes as President Donald Trump's administration imposes new restrictions targeting legal pathways into the country. The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey finds Americans are more likely than they were in March 2024 to say it’s a “major benefit” that people who come to the U.S. legally contribute to the economy and help American companies get the expertise of skilled workers. At the same time, perceptions of illegal immigration haven’t shifted meaningfully. Americans still see fewer benefits from people who come to the U.S. illegally.
Shares of Tylenol maker Kenvue are bouncing back sharply before the opening bell a day after President Donald Trump promoted unproven and in some cases discredited ties between Tylenol, vaccines and autism. Trump told pregnant women not to use the painkiller around a dozen times during the White House news conference Monday. The drugmaker tumbled 7.5%. Shares have regained most of those losses early Tuesday in premarket trading.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday signaled a cautious approach to future interest rate cuts, in sharp contrast with other Fed officials who have called for a more urgent approach. In remarks in Providence, Rhode Island, Powell noted that there are risks to both of the Fed’s goals of seeking maximum employment and stable prices. His approach is in sharp contrast to some members of the Fed’s rate-setting committee who are pushing for faster cuts.
President Donald Trump’s efforts to reshape the American media landscape have led to the suspension of late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel.
Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Jerry Greenfield is leaving the ice cream brand after 47 years. He says the freedom the company used to have to speak up on social issues has been stifled
The Federal Reserve cut its key interest rate by a quarter-point Wednesday and projected it would do so twice more this year as concern grows at the central bank about the health of the nation’s labor market. The move is the Fed’s first cut since December and lowered its short-term rate to about 4.1%, down from 4.3%. Fed officials, led by Chair Jerome Powell, had kept their rate unchanged this year as they evaluated the impact of tariffs, tighter immigration enforcement, and other Trump administration policies on inflation and the economy. The only dissenter was Stephen Miran, the recent Trump-appointee.
After a late-night vote and last-minute ruling, the Federal Reserve began a key meeting on interest rate policy Tuesday with both a new Trump administration appointee and an official the White House has targeted for removal.
The Trump administration has issued its first warnings to online services that offer unofficial versions of popular drugs like the blockbuster obesity treatment Wegovy.
