NEW YORK: Vivek Murthy, the Indian-American former US Surgeon General, has hailed Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden’s support for immigrants and his leadership to deal with crises like the COVID-19 pandemic, saying he is the leader who will heal the country after getting elected as the President.
Murthy, 43, who served as the 19th Surgeon General of the United States from December 2014 to April 2017, said Americans need a leader who works with the people for the progress of the country.
“Six years ago, when Biden met my family, many of them immigrants awed to be in the nation’s capital, I saw how he kneeled beside my grandmother’s wheelchair, took her hands in his and said Thank you for choosing us, the United States of America, as the place to trust with your family,” Murthy said in his remarks to the virtual 2020 Democratic National Convention on Thursday.
“Tonight, as a father, son and grandson, as a doctor who swore an oath and as an American who loves my country, I can tell you that Biden is the man I trust to look out for my family and the leader I know will heal this nation,” he added.
During his video remarks, a photograph of Murthy, flanked by his parents and wife and being sworn-in as the US Surgeon-General by Biden, was displayed.
Murthy, who was born in England and raised in Miami, had taken the oath on the Gita and as the Surgeon General was the highest ranking Indian-American in the Obama administration.
In his remarks to the convention, Murthy said it is not typical for a former Surgeon General to speak at a party convention but the highest duty of the nation’s top doctor is to the public and true guide is science.
“Our job is to speak the truth about public health even when it’s controversial or perceived as political. So here’s the truth. Our nation absolutely has what it takes to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic that’s claimed tens of thousands of our loved ones. We have the talent, resources and technology. What we’re missing is leadership,” Murthy said.
He added that America needs a leader who works with states to ensure there is enough testing and results are delivered quickly.
“A leader who secures a safe, effective vaccine and distributes it quickly and fairly. A leader who inspires us to practice distancing and wear masks, not as a political statement but as a patriotic duty, a commitment we make to one another,” he said.
Murthy underlined that Biden is a leader that America needs today.
Having worked with Biden, Murthy said he has seen who Biden is “with no cameras around, how he sits with people and their pain and holds them in his heart.” Biden pours over COVID briefings, asks smart questions and lets science guide his way, just as he did when managing the Ebola crisis, Murthy said.
In April 2017, Murthy, a graduate of Harvard University and Yale Medical School, was asked by the Trump Administration to resign from his duties as Surgeon General.