>> and the u.s. house supposed to gavel back in 5:00 eastern. we'll get an update according to the majority leader on where things stand on the negotiations over federal spending with the current measure set to expire tonight at midnight. a busy day on capitol hill as well. the speaker, house speaker, nancy pelosi, senate majority leader mitch mcconnell, both received their pfizer covid-19 vaccines today. and earlier, vice president pence, second lady karen pence, and the surgen general, jerome adams, received their first shots,ed a minutestered by a medical --ed a -- shots, administered by a medical team. we also heard from the vice president and surgeon general.

>> we have confirmed that you are not feeling any symptoms of covid19 this morning and read all education materials pertaining to this vaccine. before, i have a couple questions for you. had a serious reaction to any previous vaccines? and are you taking any blood thinners or have any blood disorders? vice president pence: no. >> are you pregnant or breastfeeding? vice president pence: no. [laughter] >> are you immunocompromise or suppressant? vice president pence: no. >> all right. good to go.

>> great job. great job. >> before you leave today, you will be getting a shot record proving you received the vaccine from us today. it's a twodose series so that means you will come back in 21

days for the second one. again, with any vaccine you could have a pretty sore arm at the injection site. any redness. if anything happens make sure you seek medical guidance or get medical care. >> thank you. vice president pence: good morning and thank you for being ere. i want to thank my wonderful wife and second lady karen pence, tony fauci, members of the coronavirus task force who are joining us here today. i especially want to thank the ine medical team at walter reed hospital that administered our vaccine today. i didn't feel a thing. well-done. and we appreciate your service to the country. you know, as the christmas

holiday approaches, this is always a season of hope. we gather here today at the end of an historic week to affirm to the american people that ope is on the way. and karen and i were more than happy to step forward before this week was out to take the safe and effective coronavirus vaccine that we have secured and produced for the american eople. it's truly inspiring day. as the people of this country witness this past week under operation warp speed, the first coronavirus vaccine is literally being administered in states across the country to millions of americans. make no mistake about it, it's a medical miracle. the average vaccine, i'm told by our experts, usually takes between eight and 12 years to develop and then manufacture nd distribute but we're on track here in the united states to administer millions of doses to the american people in less than one year.

it is a miracle indeed. and i also believe that history will record that this week was the beginning of the end of the coronavirus pandemic. but with cases rising across the country, with hospitalizations rising across the country, we have a ways to go. and i want to assure the american people that we're going to continue to make sure that our health care providers have all the support and resources they need to meet this moment. but vigilance and the vaccine is our way through, and building confidence in the vaccine is what brings us here this morning. ever since i was asked by president trump to lead the white house coronavirus task force, i have been inspired by the diligence and energy of our researchers in this country. early on, the president brought some of the leading

pharmaceutical companies in the world together in the cabinet room and said we needed medicines, we needed therapeutics and we needed vaccines and we needed them in record time. i watched the historic pace with which the dedicated men and women at the f.d.a. orked. but today, karen and i wanted to step forward and take this vaccine to assure the american people that while we cut red tape, we cut no corners. and thanks to operation warp speed, thanks to incredible research companies, thanks to the great work at the national institute of health and the great and careful work of the f.d.a. and the leadership of our president in operation warp speed, the american people can e confident. we have one and perhaps within hours two safe and effective coronavirus vaccines for you and for your family. and now we're in the process of

distributing millions of doses of safe and effective vaccines across the country. working closely with our nation's governors, we've seen the vaccine delivered to health care workers and seniors across the nation. this week, 2.9 million doses of the pfizer vaccine have been allocated and next week two million more doses will be distributed across america. and as you all know yesterday, the f.d.a. advisory panel recommended approval of the oderna vaccine, and when it is approved, we effect later today we'll be in position to ship 5.9 million doses of vaccines all across the country next week. in fact, under operation warp speed, we are poised to have vaccine for 20 million americans before the end of december. it is truly a medical miracle. and an inspiration to people across this country. it is it's a tribute, as well, to the dedication of all

of those working at the federal level and the state level who've implemented this project. from early on, president trump gave the white house coronavirus task force one mission and that was to save lives, and in the midst of one of the most challenging years in the life of this nation, i truly do believe that despite the heartbreak and hardship that we have endured as a nation that we've done just hat. working with members of the white house coronavirus task force these last 10 months, we scaled testing. now we're doing nearly two million tests a day, have performed more than 200 million coronavirus tests across america, and the f.d.a. just approved the first overthecounter coronavirus test for athome testing for the american people. working with a great team at fema and with the department of defense, we identified and distributed literally billions of medical supplies to our doctors and nurses and hospitals, around we'll and

we'll continue to ensure the aregivers in this country have the resources and support they need to continue to meet this moment. we saw the development of therapeutics. remdesivir, antibodies, the good use of steroids, and other methods that have literally saved lives across the country. as we gather here today and celebrate this week, we secured a safe and effective vaccine that's being distributed all across america. i wouldn't remiss if i didn't take this moment at the end of this challenging year simply to say thanks to the men and women who served on the white house coronavirus task force. you will hear from several of them in just a few moments. but let me give credit where credit is due. i want to thank dr. tony fauci and dr. deborah birx. i want to thank robert redfield and all the great men and women at the c.d.c. and secretary of h.h.s.

i want to thank the great team at fema that have stood up the greatest national mobilization since world war ii. pete gainer and general sanford and all those that worked to make sure that the american people and our health care workers have the supplies they need has made an extraordinary difference in the life of the nation. i'm also grateful for the steady hand and leadership of dr. ben carson, who has been with us every step of the way. i know i speak for every american when i say -- and i speak for our president when i say thank you for your service this year and in the days to ome. the truth is, the american people deserve to know that we've never been more prepared to combat the coronavirus virus than we are today. as we see hospitalizations rising and heartbreaking losses, we'll continue to marshal the resources we've secured as a nation, including a safe and effective vaccine to eet this moment. but with that being said, it's

important that every american remember that all of us have a role to play. the way through this challenging time is vigilance and a vaccine. the day will come when we put the coronavirus in the past, but it will be a combination of all the efforts that i just described, a vaccine that's safe and effective for the american people but also the ongoing vigilance of every american. so as we as we reach this

extraordinary and historic moment in the life of our nation, let me urge every american to continue to do your part and put the health of your neighbors and community first. practice good hygiene. wash your hands. wear a mask whenever it's indicated or whenever you're not able to practice distance, and listen to your local authorities. as president trump often says, we are rounding the corner. we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. it is the light of american innovation and creativity. it's the light of lifesaving medicines and a safe and effective vaccine. after a year of heartbreak and hardship, the american people can be encouraged. and karen and i hope this step today will be a source of confidence and of comfort to the american people that thanks to all the men and women who have operated under operation warp speed that we have a safe and effective vaccine and that these days of hardship and heartbreak will in a day not too far in the distance will be put in the past. so with gratitude for the american ingenuity of our research companies, with gratitude for the incredible health care workers who have met this moment and continue to meet this moment in the life of the nation, with gratitude for all the officials at the federal and state level and

gratitude to our president for his vision with operation warp speed, i'm confident that we will get through this, we will get through this together, and we will heal our land. so thank you, all, very uch. [applause] dr. adams: well, good morning, everyone. thank you, vice president pence, for your leadership of the coronavirus task force and to the task force members here today. administrator verna, administrator gaynor, general sanford, dr. redfield, my uddy, ben carson, and one of my mentors, dr. fauci, thank you so for the work you have all done. it's been a marathon. the last couple miles of a marathon, as the vice president says,is the hardest. by golly, the end is in sight.

e have to keep on running. the american people, we'll keep on running. we'll get there. we have our research community as well as the tens of thousands of study participants across the country to thank for showing us there is a light at the end of this tunnel, and i have to acknowledge the many people of color represented among the researchers who developed the vaccine. hout out to dr. corbett at n.i.h., an africanamerican female to help develop these vaccines. thanks to the scientists and doctors who reviewed it, particularly those of color. and the study participants who bravely volunteered to demonstrate its safety and efficacy, and dr. fauci and i have been working for months to make sure the trials are representative of the population so that everyone feels safe getting this vaccine. professionally and personally, to everyone who has made this

day possible, thank you, with all of my heart. as a practicing anesthesiologist at walter reed hospital, a frequently deployed member of the u.s. public health service commission corps, whose helped stand up multiple covid-19 testing sites, and an individual with asthma and high blood pressure, i am acutely aware of my own increased risk for covid19 exposure and the comorbidity that increases my risk of complications. and as the u.s. surgeon general and a black man, i am equally aware of the symbolic significance of my vaccination today. as i discussed with faith leaders as recently as last night, the creation of these vaccines is a gift from above. but vaccines, even ones that are 95% effective, will not alone end this pandemic. we must now do the necessary work to go from vaccines to vaccinations. it would truly be the greatest

tragedy of all if disparities in covid outcomes actually worsened because the people who could most benefit from this vaccine can't get it or won't take it. working to combat mistrust and misinformation will be critical if we are to ensure the equitable protection of all americans against covid19. lack of trust, especially in communities of color, is not without good reason. the shameful tuskegee experiments occurred within many of our lifetimes. to truly promote confidence in these vaccines, we must start by acknowledging this history of mistreatment and exploitation of minorities by the medical community and the government. but then we need to explain and demonstrate all that's been done to correct and address these wrongs. the many protections and safeguards in place like the office of human research protections, independent institutional review boards, data and safety monitoring boards, the f.d.a. verb pact, and the c.d.c. advisory committee on immunization

practices, these are all there to make sure that the tuskegee -- tragedies like the tuskegee syphilis experiments or the exploitation of henrietta lacks never ever happen again. finally, we have to engage trusted voices. medical organizations like the national medical association and the national hispanic medical association, faith leaders and the minority gatekeepers like the historically black colleges and universities, the divine nine, tribal leaders, and the national conference of hispanic state legislators, all of whom ive spoken to frequently and recently as this week. because when these gatekeepers are informed and confident, their communities will be informed and confident. i want to close by saying i know the importance of representation. many of you heard me tell this story i never believed i could be a doctor, much less the surgeon general of the united states, because i never

met another black doctor, even though i had straight a's. the first doctor i met of color was dr. ben carson when i was in college. it took me that long to believe i could be it because it took me that long to see it. that's why i could not be more pleased or feel more called to receive this vaccine that so many people of color had a hand in developing and testing and has the potential to correct at least some of the health disparities this pandemic has unveiled. and finally, to all the people f this great nation, it is not only ok to have questions about a treatment that you're being offered, it's normal, and i want you to understand that. but what is not normal is to let misinformation or mistrust cause you to make a decision that is bad for your health. so i promise i will keep working, i'll keep working day and night to make sure you get your questions answered and to restore your trust.

i got the facts and i made a choice to protect my health. when it's your turn, i need you to be informed, and i need you to make a choice that's going to be appropriate for your health. thank you so much, and i'll turn things over to dr. fauci. dr. fauci: thank you very much, jerome. mr. vice president, second lady, madam pence, jerome, thank you. i really feel extraordinarily privileged and honored to be with you here today to make a few comments about the most extraordinary undertaking that you see here today culminating n something that is an actionable intervention that will get us out of the extraordinary experience that we've had over the last year. as i was sitting here listening to the remarks of vice president pence and jerome, i was looking over at bob redfield and recalling that it was about a year plus a few weeks that bob called me up one

evening at home and told me, i think we have a problem. i'm getting information from my sources in china that there is something very unusual going on there, and i'm very concerned about it. literally a week and a half ater, the effort that led to where we are today to see the vice president of the united states and the surgeon general get vaccinated with a safe and effective vaccine, literally a few days after that, the work began to develop the vaccine. and what we saw was the marriage between years of fundamental, basic, and clinical research that led to the extraordinary technology that have allowed us and when i say us, i mean the medical community. so many people from so many different agencies in academia, in government, and in industry, to do something that is truly unprecedented. so we started literally days after that phone call that i

had with bob, and over a period of months, as opposed to years, we saw the development in record time of a vaccine that has shown to be safe and effective. we want virtually everyone eligible to get this vaccine ultimately. two questions get asked when people have hesitancy or reluctance to get vaccinated. did you go too quickly is the first. the answer to that is the speed was a reflection of extraordinary scientific dvances and did not compromise safety, nor did it compromise scientific integrity. the next question is -- ok. but what about the fact is it really safe and is it really effective or is this something the government is trying to put ver on us. is this something the companies want to take advantage of?

well, let's take a look at what happened over the past few months. we've had clinical trials, and thanks to the volunteers in that trial, in tens of thousands who have put themselves on the line to prove to the country and the world that these are safe and effective products. the decision as to whether or not it's safe and effective was not in the hands of the company, nor was it in the hands of the administration. it was in the hands of independent body of individuals, scientists, vaccinologists, ethicist, statisticians and to examine the data independently and say its ready to look at for pproval. and which point the company ubmits to the f.d.a. and together with the advisory committee at the f.d.a. to make the decision it's now ready to go. so the process was independent and totally transparent, which brings us to where we are today. this important, symbolic

vaccination of the vice president of the united states and the surgeon general of the united states which is something we want to be symbolic to tell the rest of the country, the time is now to step to the plate and when the time comes to get vaccinated. when we speak to you here today, i often say it's really bittersweet. the bitterness is the fact what the vice president mentioned. we're still in the middle of a very difficult situation with record numbers of cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. but the sweetness is the light at the end of the tunnel. which i can tell you, as we get into january, february, march, and april, that light is going to get brighter and brighter. and the bitterness is going to be replaced by the sweetness. and we all hope and i think this is doable, by the time we get to several months into this year, we will have enough people protected that we can

start thinking seriously about the return to normality, and that's up to all of us to step forward and get vaccinated. thank you. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2020] >> where is the president? >> wouldn't it be important for the president to be here? who will get the vaccine next? >> looking live at the u.s. capitol and waiting for the house to gavel back in. at about 5:00 p.m. eastern. the maj