McConnell urges Americans: 'Get vaccinated' or risk shutdown

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell is imploring unvaccinated Americans to take the COVID-19 shot

WASHINGTON -- Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell implored unvaccinated Americans Tuesday to take the COVID-19 shot, issuing a stark and grave warning of a repeat of last year's shutdowns if people refuse to protect themselves from the coronavirus. McConnell urged Americans to ignore the “demonstrably bad advice” coming from pundits and others against the vaccines. As caseloads skyrocket, he noted that nearly all the new virus hospitalizations in the U.S. are among people who have not been vaccinated. “If there is anybody out there willing to listen: Get vaccinated,” McConnell, R-Ky., said at his weekly press conference at the Capitol. “These shots need to get in everybody's arms as rapidly as possible or we’re going to be back in a situation in the fall that we don't yearn for — that we went through last year,” he said. “This is not complicated.”