Number 2 Republican in the House, Steve Scalise, Finally Gets COVID Vaccine

Shortly after the COVID vaccines came out, some lawmakers rushed out to get them. And by mid-May, 219 Democratic congresspeople asked, 100% of them, said they had gotten their shot.

The numbers looked much different for Republicans. Only 45% of GOP house members polled, 95 of 211, said they’d been vaccinated.

That poll was conducted back in May, so while many probably refused, some Republicans might have been vaccinated. Today, Steve Scalise, the number 2 Republican in the house decided to get his any urged others to do the same.

When asked why he finally chose to get inoculated, he said, “Especially with the delta variant becoming a lot more aggressive and seeing another spike, it was a good time to do it. When you talk to people who run hospitals, in New Orleans or other states, 90% of people in hospital with delta variant have not been vaccinated. That’s another signal the vaccine works.”

Scalise continued, “It’s safe and effective. It was heavily tested on thousands of people before the FDA gave its approval. Some people believe that it might have been rushed. That’s not the case. I’ve been vocal about that for months. I know their process has high standards. The FDA approval process is probably the most respected in the world.”

While it is easy to be cynical about Scalise taking all these months to get vaccinated, it is a positive that he decided to do the right thing now.