During the press briefing on Friday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki stated America is not going back to more lockdowns, despite the huge spike of COVID cases brought by the delta variant.
In the press briefing, the White House press secretary was asked by reporter Stephanie Ramos whether the public should expect another economic lockdown, as COVID cases caused by the delta variant are surging.
White House press secretary: “It is not March 2020 or January 2021”
Psaki answered, stating she thinks the first message the White House wants to deliver is that it is not “March 2020 or January 2021”.
The press secretary then maintained that the administration is not going to lock down the U.S. economy again, nor the schools; Psaki claimed that the United States is in a more powerful place, compared to when Biden first took office.
White House on potential lockdowns: 'We are not going back' or 'turning back the clock': White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Friday that the country was not headed toward more lockdowns despite a surge in the delta variant of the coronavirus. https://t.co/Zht17dNdCS pic.twitter.com/sOFSHni9Aj
— USA News (@1USNews) August 6, 2021
Psaki then went on and boasted about the handling of the COVID pandemic by Biden and his administration. She then emphasized that America is not going back on lockdown, insisting that they are not going to “turn back the clock.”
The surge of COVID cases in the past week frustrated the White House. The numbers also led to questions as to whether the declaration of “independence” from the virus by Biden and his administration last month was premature.
The arrival of the delta variant in the country is not unexpected; the strain has been infecting people throughout India and the United Kingdom. When the delta variant started infecting people in the U.S., COVID cases surged, exploiting the high number of people who are still unvaccinated.
100,000 new infections were recorded every day, 10 times higher than the numbers recorded in June
According to the recent data, 100,000 new infections every day are being recorded in the United States. These numbers are ten times higher than those recorded in June.
Nevertheless, the Biden administration maintains that they are not alarmed; that’s despite the fact that they are taking a highly aggressive stance to urge people to get vaccinated.
As the White House press secretary mentioned before, the administration is preparing like “Boy and Girl Scouts”. This week, Amazon is among the big companies in the U.S. that told their employees that they do not have to go to their offices until January next year.
This move is highly likely to be copied by other businesses, continuously depriving city centers of commuters. However, the remarks made by Psaki are a big relief for most Americans, as the country went through stringent COVID restrictions for almost a year.
The fast-spreading delta variant won't force the U.S. into another lockdown, Jean-Pierre says pic.twitter.com/movTVbl7ws
— Bloomberg Quicktake (@Quicktake) July 31, 2021
On the other hand, principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also previously mentioned that when it comes to possible future school closures and future lockdowns, the administration will keep listening to scientists.
Jean-Pierre claimed that the situation is not about politics; it is about public health and saving lives.
