Biden says don’t let down your guard. He bemoaned too many acting as if COVID-19 fight over: ‘It is not’

President Biden on Friday cautioned Americans against letting their guard down against the coronavirus pandemic, warning that the country’s progress against COVID-19 could be lost if people aren’t vigilant.

“Too many Americans are acting as if this fight is over. It is not,” Biden said during remarks on the March jobs report.

Biden’s timeline: “I’ve told people that if my administration did the hard work of getting shots to all Americans in the next few months, if the American people continued to do their part — mask up, practice social distancing — we could have a more normal July 4th,” he continued. “But this is still April, not July. We aren’t there yet. And so cases are going up again. The virus is spreading more rapidly in many places. Deaths are going up in some states.”

“So I ask, I plead with you: Don’t give back the progress we’ve all fought so hard to achieve. We need to finish this job,” the president added.

Big picture: Administration officials have sought to balance optimism about the increasing number of vaccinated Americans with the reality of rising case numbers as states loosen restrictions on businesses and as more contagious variants spread.