9/2/20
Eighty-one Nobel Prize winners endorsed Joe Biden for president in an open letter on Wednesday, citing the former vice president's "willingness to listen to experts" and his "deep appreciation for using science to find solutions." The Nobel laureates, winners of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Medicine and Physics, stressed the importance of elected leaders making decisions based on science, particularly during a global pandemic. "At no time in our nation's history has there been a greater need for our leaders to appreciate the value of science in formulating public policy," the letter reads. "During his long record of public service, Joe Biden has consistently demonstrated his willingness to listen to experts, his understanding of the value of international collaboration in research and his respect for the contribution that immigrants make to the intellectual life of our country." The person who organized all of the laureates to endorse Biden is Illinois Democratic Rep. Bill Foster, who is the sole physicist on Capitol Hill, according to a person close to the Nobel Laureate group. The endorsement from the Nobel laureates comes on the heels of a Washington Post report that one of Trump's top medical advisers was urging the White House to embrace a controversial "herd immunity" strategy to combat the pandemic.
"In the past, Joe Biden has shown a deep appreciation for using science to find solutions to America's ailments," said Harold Varmus, who has served as director of the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute and received the 1989 Nobel Prize in medicine. "His sensible, determined approach to building a cancer research initiative after his son's death was inspiring. It illustrates the kind of thoughtful leadership that we need to tackle the current global pandemic." "The multiple crises facing our country, including one of misinformation, requires a leader with profound admiration for science and truth," said Roger Kornberg, the winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in chemistry. "I support Joe Biden's pro-science agenda and sensible approach to public health decisions. A true leader who will face the truth and be honest with the American people." "Now more than ever, our country needs elected leaders who make decisions based on science," said Elizabeth Blackburn, the winner of the 2009 Nobel Prize in medicine. "Joe Biden is the strong, compassionate leader we need to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic. He'll listen to the scientific and medical community to create solutions that will finally get us out of this deadly pandemic and improve the health of the American people."