US President, Joe Biden has announced a new goal of administering 200 million COVID vaccination doses in his first 100 days in office.
This is double the target of 100 million jabs he set in December 2020. He achieved the feat before his 60th day in office, with an average of 2.5 million doses a day.
Speaking in his first news conference as US President, Biden told reporters, “I believe we can do it.
“I know it’s ambitious, twice our original goal, but no other country in the world has even come close.
“There are still too many Americans out of work, too many families hurting and a lot of work to do. But I can say to the American people; Help is here and hope is on the way.”
President Joe Biden
- Biden pledges all US adults will be eligible for vaccines by May 1
- Biden vows enough vaccine for all US adults by end of May
The President also announced that $10bn is going to be allocated to expanding access to vaccines for the “highest-risk communities”.
With States lifting eligibility requirements for people to get the shots, experts say the rollout of vaccines is on track to increase over the next month
Biden also revealed that nearly half of schools from kindergarten through to eighth grade (13-14yr-olds) have opened for in-person learning.
This means that he has almost met another of his targets which is to ensure a majority of such schools are fully operational, within the same 100-day deadline.
Plans to seek re-election 200 million
In the wide-ranging news conference, Biden also disclosed he is planning to run for the White House again in 2024. The President will be 81 come November 2024.
That may bring him up against Donald Trump, who has said he might try again in three years’ time.
Reminded by a reporter that Trump had already established a re-election committee by this point in his term, Biden laughed as he replied, “My predecessor needed to”.
“My predecessor. Oh, God, I miss him. No, the answer is yes. My plan is to run for re-election. That’s my expectation.”
The President was also pressed on the issue of migration by reporters. He rejected claims that more migrants were making the journey to the US border because they perceived him to be a “nice guy.”
He was also repeatedly quizzed about the situation at the U.S.-Mexico border, where increasing numbers of young migrants have overwhelmed the US government’s holding facilities.
Biden promised better media access to the camps once his administration has a better handle on things. He also assured that there will be improvements to the nation’s immigration system.
“I can’t guarantee that we’re going to solve everything, but I can guarantee that we’re going to make it better.”
Addressing foreign policy, the President said Dealing with North Korea is the top issue for him. This comes as the Asian country launched ballistic missile tests this week, the first during the Biden administration.
“There will be responses if they choose to escalate. We will respond accordingly. But I’m also prepared for…diplomacy, but it has to be conditioned upon the end result of denuclearization.”
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