Presidential Speech Highlights: Biden Calls For U.S. to ‘Mark Our Independence

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Biden Wants All Adults Eligible for Vaccination by May 1

President Biden on Thursday called on states to make the coronavirus vaccine available to all adults by May 1 and said he was hopeful that the country could return to some form of normal life by the Fourth of July.

A year ago, we were hit with a virus that was met with silence and spread unchecked — denials for days, weeks, then months, that led to more deaths, more infections, more stress and more loneliness. A year filled with the loss of life and the loss of living for all of us. But in the loss, we saw how much there was to gain, in appreciation, respect and gratitude. Finding light in the darkness is a very American thing to do. I’m announcing that I will direct all states, tribes and territories to make all adults, people 18 and over, eligible to be vaccinated no later than May 1. With the passage of the American Rescue Plan, and I thank again the House and Senate for passing it, and my announcement last month of a plan to vaccinate teachers and school staff, we can accelerate massive nationwide effort to reopen our schools safely. If we do this together, by July the Fourth, there’s a good chance you, your families and friends will be able to get together in your backyard or in your neighborhood and have a cookout and a barbecue and celebrate Independence Day. After this long, hard year, that will make this Independence Day something truly special — where we not only mark our independence as a nation, but we begin to mark our independence from this virus.

President Biden on Thursday evening directed states to make all adult Americans eligible to receive coronavirus vaccines no later than May 1, using a somber but hopeful prime-time address to the nation to say Americans may be able to “mark our independence from this virus” by the Fourth of July.

Mr. Biden offered a renewed sense of optimism as he recognized the one-year anniversary since the World Health Organization declared the spread of the virus a global pandemic, which plunged the nation and the world into health and economic crises. With continued vigilance, he said, families and friends may be able to gather to celebrate the nation’s independence.

“If we do our part, if we do this together, by July the 4th there’s a good chance you, your families and friends will be able to get together in your backyard or in your neighborhood and have a cookout and a barbecue and celebrate Independence Day,” the president said.

Mr. Biden’s speech — solemn and short — was a stark contrast to the often rambling and defensive remarks by former President Donald J. Trump, who a year ago to the day had said “the risk is very, very low” for most Americans and predicted that the country would “ultimately and expeditiously defeat this virus.”

Instead, Mr. Biden sought to balance empathy for more than…