Trump claims officials plotting 'political hit' to delay Covid-19 vaccine and says election will decide 'whether we end pandemic'

Donald Trump suggested unnamed US officials are conspiring a “political hit” against him by delaying the release of a Covid-19 vaccine after he accused the Food and Drug Administration of political interference by requiring the drug to meet health guidelines.

Addressing a crowd at a campaign rally in Florida on Thursday night, the president said: "They're trying to do a little bit of a political hit. 'Let's delay it just a little bit.' Did you notice that?"

He also suggested that the results of the 2020 presidential election will determine "whether we end the pandemic" that has killed more than 200,000 Americans over the last several months.

The president made similar remarks in recent days as his campaign sprints across the US in battleground states despite health guidelines urging against crowds to prevent the spread of infection.

On Wednesday, the president said that he “may or may not” approve FDA guidelines following Senate testimony from members of his administration assuring that its work alongside the agency was motivated by science and data and defended its integrity.

The president has claimed that a vaccine would be ready within weeks, among his Election Day promises as the nation’s climbing death toll shows no immediate signs of slowing, but his statements contradict realistic assessments from health officials and medical experts, including his own Centres for Disease Control and Prevention director.

His public statements and rush to release a vaccine, part of the administration’s multi-billion dollar Operation Warp Speed program, have raised fears that he federal regulatory agencies would bend to pressure for a swift release before a drug’s safety and efficacy has been proven.

New guidance issued by the FDA for emergency use authorisation for late-stage trial vaccines would require independent review before approval. 

"We're looking at that and that has to be approved by the White House. We may or may not approve it," the president told reporters at the White House on Wednesday. “That sounds like a political move.”

He has previously levelled baseless attacks against the FDA, suggesting it’s part of a “deep state” conspiracy to undermine his re-election chances.

Officials at the FDA and CDC have repeatedly assured Americans that whenever a vaccine is approved it will be safe.

FDA director Stephen Hahn told a Senate committee on Wednesday that the agency “will not authorize or approve any Covid-19 vaccine before it has met the agency's rigorous expectations for safety and effectiveness.”

Five vaccines supported by the Warp Speed effort are in their late clinical stages.

CDC director Robert Redfield told a Senate committee last week that a viable vaccine is expected “sometime between November and December" but that it will be in “very limited supply and will have to be prioritised” for people in vulnerable age groups and with pre-existing conditions.