Gov. Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas reached across the symbolic aisle on Monday to thank President Joe Biden for his efforts to "depoliticize" the country's COVID-19 response amid the raging Omicron variant.
The Republican leader made the comments during a conference call held by the Biden administration with the governors of several states to discuss the national response to the worrisome Omicron variant, which has sparked a spike in cases across the country in recent days and prompted testing shortages and delays.
"I want to thank all of the White House team for being such great support to the governors," Hutchinson said during his opening remarks, The Hill reported. "And I want to thank Mr. President — your address to the nation last week. Thank you for your comments designed to depoliticize our COVID response. I think that was helpful."
Last week, Biden outlined additional steps his administration was taking to fight the Omicron variant in a national address. In addition to offering a "stark warning" to the unvaccinated, Biden also offered a rare point of praise to his predecessor, former President Donald Trump.
"Thanks to the prior administration and our scientific community, America is one of the first countries to get the vaccine," Biden said during his speech from the White House last Tuesday. "And thanks to my administration and the hard work of Americans, we led a rollout that made America among the world leaders in getting shots in arms."