Politics

Bill Gates Says Presidential Transition Is ‘Complicating’ Vaccine Distribution

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Microsoft founder Bill Gates responded to a question Sunday about President Donald Trump’s failure to concede the results of the 2020 election, suggesting that the transition process is “complicating” the distribution of the coronavirus vaccine.

Though Trump has thus far refused to formally concede the election to President-elect Joe Biden, the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday dealt the latest and most significant in a series of legal defeats for his campaign’s efforts to overturn the results.

During a Sunday morning interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” anchor Jake Tapper asked Gates whether Trump’s actions could “complicate the process” of vaccine distribution, set to begin next week after the FDA approved Pfizer’s vaccine for emergency use.

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“Yeah, the transition is complicating [things], but the new administration is willing to rely on actual experts and not attack those experts,” Gates responded.

“They’re laying out clear plans, so I think we’ll get through this in a positive way,” he continued. “I’m pleased with the people and priority that President-elect Biden and his team are bringing to bear on this problem.” (RELATED: FDA Commissioner: ‘No External Pressure’ Guided Decision For Vaccine Approval)

Several hundred distribution sites are slated to receive the first Pfizer coronavirus vaccine shipments Monday and Tuesday. The Trump administration has predicted that up to 100 million doses could be distributed by the end of 2020.