Reader Harry McLaughlin of Wanaque recently wrote that Pres. Biden’s “promise to shut down the virus was just another piece of campaign rhetoric that unfortunately too many people believed” and argued that the shortage of test kits is the result of the Biden administration’s focus on infrastructure and failure to “plan for the expected surge.”

Curiously, he fails to criticize Republican governors and legislatures who continue to fight mask and vaccine mandates, which are proven to be the most effective defenses against a rapidly mutating and transmittable virus. Anti-mandate lawsuits continue to be filed by Republicans, which only delays federal efforts to fight the virus. It is well documented that the doubly unmasked and unvaccinated are experiencing higher rates of infections and death than vaccinated individuals, driving the higher hospitalizations and deaths in 2021.

These avoidable deaths are truly tragic, but blaming the Biden administration does not solve the problem.