George W. Bush Joins Former Presidents Carter, Clinton And Obama Urging Americans To Get Vaccinated
NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM/CNN) - Former Presidents George W. Bush, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and their respective former first ladies are combating coronavirus vaccine skepticism in a new ad campaign urging Americans to get immunized when it is their turn.
There are two ads in the campaign: a minute-long, more personal spot that shows the four former presidents and former first ladies receiving their vaccines, and another that features Clinton, Bush and Obama standing together to urge Americans to step up and get vaccinated.
The ad campaign reunites almost every member of the so-called President's Club, the group of living former commanders in chief. Former President Donald Trump and former first lady Melania Trump are not featured in either ad, the only living president and first lady to not participate. The most recent former president and his wife both received the coronavirus vaccine in January at the White House but did not publicize the fact until weeks after they had left Washington.
The ads are being released at a critical time in the fight against the coronavirus and one year after the outbreak was first declared a pandemic.
With vaccines becoming more widely available in cities and states across the country, those in charge of getting vaccines in the arms of Americans are eager to use the influence of people such as the former presidents to push people to get their shots. Vaccine hesitancy remains an issue, even as the number of people hesitant to get the vaccine has been dropping rapidly.
The longer spot begins with Bush touting that COVID vaccines will "soon be available to everyone," before Obama says that the vaccine means "hope" that it "will protect you and those you love from this dangerous and deadly disease."
The ad then turns to the presidents describing what they have missed during the pandemic and why they want to be vaccinated. Bush says he is "really looking forward to going to Opening Day in Texas Rangers Stadium with the full stadium." Clinton says he wants to "go back to work" and to "be able to move around." And Obama says he misses visiting his mother-in-law and he wants to "hug her and see her on her birthday."
Carter does not speak on camera, but the 96-year-old President says during the spot that he is getting vaccinated "because we want this pandemic to end as soon as possible."
The ad ends with all four former presidents urging Americans to get the vaccine as images of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, Barack and Michelle Obama, George and Laura Bush and Bill and Hillary Clinton all getting their vaccines are shown.
"So, we urge you to get vaccinated when it is available to you," Obama says.
"Roll up your sleeve and do you part," Bush says.
"This is our shot," Clinton says.
"Now it is up to you," Carter concludes, as an image of the smiling former President holding his vaccine card closes the ad.
According to recent data, about 93.7 million vaccine doses have been administered in the United States, with the Food and Drug Administration issuing emergency use authorizations for three vaccines: The two-shot Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines and the single-dose Johnson & Johnson one.
The coronavirus has infected over 29 million people in the United States, killing over 529,000 Americans. The death toll worldwide has reached roughly 2.6 million.
The second spot features Clinton, Bush and Obama standing together at Memorial Amphitheater at Arlington National Cemetery. The three were there on January 20 for a ceremony during President Joe Biden's inauguration.
The ad is framed like an address by the three former presidents to the American people, with Bush beginning the ad by saying, "Our fellow Americans," before Clinton says, "Right now, the COVID-19 vaccines are available to millions of Americans" and Obama adds, "And soon they will be available to everyone."
"The science is clear, these vaccines will protect you and those you love from this dangerous and deadly disease," Bush says. "So, we urge you to get vaccinated when it is available to you."
"That's the first step to ending the pandemic and moving our country forward," Obama says. "It's up to you."
The ads are part of a collaboration between the COVID Collaborative project and the Ad Council, a nonprofit organization the produces and promotes public service announcements. The council said the project with the four former presidents and first ladies began in December 2020 and are being released on Thursday because vaccines are becoming more widely available.
The Ad Council said the ads would appear nationwide during time and space donated to them by a range of television and digital platforms. They will begin airing this week.
In a statement to CNN former president Bush said he and Laura "are grateful for the dedicated scientists and researchers who enabled safe and effective vaccines to be developed so quickly" and urged Americans to get the vaccine.
The Biden administration has made getting Americans vaccinated central to both its fight against the coronavirus and its messaging around the success of the President's first 100 days in office. Biden made a pledge early in his administration to get 100 million shots in arms within his first 100 days, a goal he appears likely to achieve.
(© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The CNN Wire™ & © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company contributed to this report.)
