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Can’t we keep politics out of the race for a coronavirus vaccine?

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There was once a time when tragedy and national challenges brought Americans together. From the moonshot to 9/11, we knew moments of national trial …
There was once a time when tragedy and national challenges brought Americans together. From the moonshot to 9/11, we knew moments of national trial call for one nation locked in common purpose and solidarity. But in the coronavirus times? Well, this hasn’t proved to be one of those times thus far. That has to change. Even in the midst of an election as acrimonious as any in generations, Americans must be united in fighting this horrible virus. There is no better opportunity to do so than in celebrating the development of a vaccine that can end our national nightmare. Operation Warp Speed, the federal government’s effort to create a vaccine, has been one of the greatest successes of an otherwise pretty miserable five months of disease and lockdown. Dr. Moncef Slaoui, who took over the effort in May, told me in Washington last month he has high confidence that a drug could be rolled out by year’s end; his optimism is shared by America’s attending physician, Dr. ­Anthony Fauci. Ironically, part of the cause for optimism is the fast spread of the virus itself. Slaoui estimated between 15 and 25 percent of Americans have already contracted COVID-19, which makes vaccine testing easier and faster. It also means that fewer Americans would need to a take a vaccine to achieve herd immunity. But this hasn’t stopped partisan critics, including at The New York Times, from taking baseless potshots at the effort and hinting at supposedly dangerous corner-cutting in the operation.

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