Most Americans say they wouldn't trust an American vaccine if it came out this year before the election. They are worried that Trump may be putting on pressure to get one out to help his election bid that it might not be safe.
Poll: Most Americans wouldn't take a COVID-19 vaccine before the election
A majority of Americans are concerned that a COVID-19 vaccine will be rushed to the market before it's ready because of political pressure from the Trump administration, according to a new poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF).
Even if a vaccine is available before Election Day, 54 percent of respondents said they wouldn't take it.
The survey, released Thursday, found 62 percent of respondents said they were concerned about a vaccine being authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) before it is proven to be safe and effective. That number included 85 percent of Democrats, 61 percent of independents and 35 percent of Republicans.
If a vaccine were approved before Nov. 3 and made freely available to anyone who wanted it, about half of all respondents said they would not want to get vaccinated.
According to the poll, 56 percent of independents and 60 percent of Republicans said they would not get the vaccine, while 50 percent of Democrats said they would.
I think someone was lying to the pollsters. More Democrats than Republicans say they'd be worried; but they'd also be more willing to get vaccinated than Republicans. Does it make sense? The numbers would mean 15% of Democrats wouldn't worry about the safety but 50% would still get vaccinated. That suggests 35% of the worried Democrats figured it might not be safe, but then again it might be, so weighing the risks, they went with deciding to be vaccinated even if they didn't trust Trump.
On the other hand, 65% of the Republicans say they wouldn't worry about it, but only 40% would get vaccinated? I think 25% of them were lying -- they say they're not worried but still wouldn't get vaccinated? Or are they being reckless, not worrying about the safety of the vaccine or of getting Covid-19?
Or were 35% of the Democrats lying, pretending to be afraid of it trying to make Trump look bad while they got vaccinated anyway?
It could be that the independents were the most honest. Those numbers make more sense since 61% expressed concern and 56% said they wouldn't get vaccinated.