VICTOR JOECKS: Biden ignores Nevada’s lower vaccination rates in attacks on DeSantis

If President Joe Biden thinks governors are responsible for vaccination rates, Gov. Steve Sisolak deserves more scrutiny than Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

DeSantis is coming to Northern Nevada this weekend to speak at the Basque Fry, run by Adam Laxalt’s Morning in Nevada PAC. If Donald Trump doesn’t run in 2024, DeSantis is the current front-runner for the Republican nomination and would be a formidable challenger.

Biden has noticed too. Over the past two weeks, Biden and White House staff have attacked DeSantis for rising coronavirus cases in his state.

“The escalation of cases is particularly concentrated in states with low vaccination rates,” Biden said this month. “Just two states, Florida and Texas account for one-third of all new COVID-19 cases in the entire country.”

Addressing governors such as DeSantis who oppose mask and vaccine mandates, he added, “If you aren’t going to help, at least get out of the way.”

Given that attack, you might expect Nevada to have far more vaccines and fewer coronavirus deaths per capita than Florida. After all, Sisolak has laid the groundwork to push vaccine mandates in higher education and for health care workers. He reimposed a mask mandate, too.

Florida though has vaccinated more people per capita than Nevada. In Florida, 71 percent of adult residents have received at least one dose, and 60 percent are fully vaccinated. In Nevada, those numbers are 67 percent and 56 percent respectively. More importantly, 93 percent of those 65 and older in Florida have received at least one dose. In Nevada, it’s 85 percent. Numbers are from The New York Times coronavirus tracker.

Florida currently has substantially more new cases and hospitalizations than Nevada. But its overall death rate remains lower. In Florida, 187 people per 100,000 have died from the coronavirus. In Nevada, it’s 198 per 100,000.

If DeSantis hadn’t done such an incredible job vaccinating older residents, it’s terrifying to think what the delta variant would be doing there now.

DeSantis also reopened schools last fall. In Nevada, many kids were out of the classroom all year and had the failing grades to prove it. DeSantis’ push to keep the economy open has paid off, too. Florida’s unemployment rate is 5 percent. In Nevada, it’s 7.8 percent.

Despite Nevada’s summer surge, Biden’s hasn’t directed his ire toward Sisolak. Little surprise because they’re both Democrats. Notice how little outrage the White House has for Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards despite his state having the most new cases per capita in the country. You guessed it. Edwards is a Democrat.

Last year, blue state governors blamed Donald Trump for their high death rates. Biden said he had a plan to get the virus under control. Instead of admitting that wasn’t true — as the country now knows firsthand — Biden blames his failure to tame the coronavirus on red state governors.

No one can outlaw the virus. You can reduce your personal risk dramatically by being vaccinated. Despite being the target of Biden’s attacks, DeSantis has overseen more per capita vaccines than Sisolak.

Listen to Victor Joecks discuss his columns each Monday at 3 p.m. with Kevin Wall on AM 670 KMZQ Right Talk. Contact him at vjoecks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4698. Follow @victorjoecks on Twitter.