Trump Claims Without Evidence COVID Vaccine Was Deliberately Delayed to Serve as a ‘Political Hit’

President Donald Trump suggested Thursday that his opponents were orchestrating delays to the development of a coronavirus vaccine in order to undermine him in the election. Speaking to supporters during a campaign rally in Jacksonville, Florida, he said, “We will have a vaccine so soon, you won’t even believe it, although they are trying to do a little bit of a political hit. ‘Let’s delay the vaccine just a little bit.’ Did you notice that?” The commander in chief has previously contradicted his own health officials and said a vaccine against COVID-19 would arrive by Election Day. Experts predicted such an outcome was not likely to begin with and would become even less likely in light of stricter approval standards announced by the Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told The Daily Beast Monday that neither Trump nor anyone in his administration has seen the data from vaccination trials, as the studies are double-blind.