PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP pleaded with senior citizens Friday to stick with him, promising free vaccines and therapeutics to help them fight the coronavirus and painting an apocalyptic picture of a Biden administration that would strip them of Medicare and Social Security benefits in a last-ditch pitch to reclaim an important voting bloc that’s increasingly supporting his challenger.
“I will protect you, I will defend you, I will fight for you with every ounce of energy and conviction that I have,” the president said Friday afternoon in Fort Myers. “You devoted your life to this country and I am devoting my life to you.”
The pledge comes as polls show Trump shedding support at an alarming rate from seniors – a demographic he handily won in 2016 by 7 points.
The most recent national polls, including one from CNN/SSRS and another from The Wall Street Journal/NBC News, found the former vice president with more than a 20-point lead over Trump among voters 65 and older.
“I’m moving heaven and earth to safeguard our seniors from the China virus to deliver life-saving therapies in record time and to distribute a safe and effective vaccine before the end of the year,” Trump said. “We’re really doing it even sooner than that.”
The president said his administration is on track to deliver at least 100 million doses of vaccine this year and recently inked a deal with CVS and Walgreens to supply it directly to nursing homes at no cost.
