Ron Johnson urges FDA not to expedite COVID vaccines in his latest attack on public health

Senator Ron Johnson has written a letter to the FDA criticizing the Biden Administration for "rushing the approval process" for political reasons, reports the conservative Washington Times.

Johnson has repeatedly earned his "Ron Anon" nickname throughout the pandemic as an opponent of vaccines (while denying he's an anti-vaxxer) and other COVID-19 mitigation efforts. The most recent spike in cases and deaths caused by the Delta variant haven't slowed his roll.

The Washington Times reported on the contents of his letter, which it said it had obtained exclusively:

"The Wisconsin Republican warned against the Food and Drug Administration's pending approval of Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine, which is expected Monday.

"He said the fast-track decision appeared more political than scientific since it skipped the usual formal advisory committee meeting and did not fully account for the reports of deaths and disabilities suffered by people after being vaccinated.

"'I see no need to rush the FDA approval process for any of the three COVID-19 vaccines. Expediting the process appears to only serve the political purpose of imposing and enforcing vaccine mandates.'"

In the letter, Johnson also charged that "over the last year and a half, the decisions of federal health agencies have dramatically affected the lives of all Americans. The impact of these decisions has been felt in Americans' treatment options, employment, schools, housing and travel, and in countless other ways. The human toll of the social restrictions and economic devastation is incalculable."

The Washington Times did report this from the Biden administration:

"U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy told "Fox News Sunday" that moving the Pfizer vaccine from "emergency" to "full approval" would make mandates more appealing."There are universities and businesses that have been considering putting in vaccine requirements in order to create a safer, a workplace, a learning environment," he said. "I think this announcement from the FDA would likely encourage them and make them feel more comfortable in putting some requirements in place."

Johnson's stature as a de facto spokesperson for the virus has long been documented. Last month, Washington Post fact checkers gave Johnson four Pinocchios for his campaign of vaccine misinformation. It quoted this bizarre claim from Johnson in a July 14 interview on Fox News' "Hannity."

"The fact of the matter is it looks like natural immunity is as strong if not stronger than vaccinated immunity. ... There is a risk to the vaccine. Again, it's very small, but there are some pretty serious side effects, including death. We are already over 5,200 deaths reported on the VAERS system. That's a CDC, FDA's early warning system."

"Johnson has emerged as the leading vaccine skeptic in Congress this year," the Post reported. "For months, the senator has been peddling misinformation about coronavirus vaccines, undeterred by fact checkers, federal health agencies, medical experts and a growing body of scientific research. We previously dug into two Johnsonclaims that resurfaced in this interview on Fox News, a network whose right-wing personalities consistently bash the Biden administration's vaccination efforts."

A month earlier, in June, there was this from CNN: "YouTube suspended Johnson's account after it posted a video of the senator making dubious claims about treatments for the coronavirus. In the video, Johnson voiced support for using hydroxychloroquine against the virus, the same drug Donald Trump enthusiastically endorsed and used as a preventative treatment for coronavirus last year."

It has all been part of a pandemic-long quest for Johnson to stoke support from the Trump base. Among his most notable strange moments, Johnson brought forth a parade of dubious doctors at a December Senate hearing on the pandemic for the purpose of "elevating fringe theories," in the polite words of the New York Times. Johnson was so repulsive that he even bridged the partisan divide on the subject. Here's more from newspaper:

"Mr. Johnson's inflammatory public statements and his decision to give a platform to an assortment of contrarian doctors promoting alternative treatments have also irked some fellow Republicans, who have privately groused that he is acting irresponsibly."