Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris has cast doubt on the U.S. vaccine development process, saying in a CNN interview that she would be hesitant to take any COVID-19 vaccine released by the Trump administration before the election. “I will say that I would not trust Donald Trump and it would have to be a credible source of information that talks about the efficacy and the reliability of whatever he’s talking about,” she said. “I will not take his word for it.” Following Trump’s pressure on health officials to speed up the vaccine process, Harris speculated that political interference will skew the vaccine’s efficacy and she doesn’t think scientists will have the final word before it’s administered. However, Dr. Anthony Fauci, who Harris says she trusts, has assured that a vaccine would not go public unless it’s completely safe, including going through rigorous, independent tests. Moncef Slaoui, chief adviser to the federal government’s ‘Operation Warp Speed’ vaccine program, promised there had been no political interference and told CNN he would resign if there ever was.
