The city will soon start paying New Yorkers $100 to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, Mayor de Blasio announced Wednesday while fending off a call from the federal government to immediately reinstate an indoor mask mandate amid a resurgence in COVID-19 infections.

The currency-inducing coronavirus shots will start Friday at all city-run vaccination sites for those who can show proof of New York residence or employment, de Blasio said.“When you get your first dose, you will get a $100 incentive,” the mayor said in his daily briefing. “It does not get better than that.”

The money will be issued in pre-paid debit cards that can either be emailed to recipients in digital form or mailed in physical form to their homes, according to Rachel Loeb, president of the New York City Economic Development Corporation, which is handling the logistics of the payouts.The financial incentive is the latest effort by de Blasio to boost vaccination rates and comes on the heels of him mandating that all city municipal workers get their shots or submit to weekly testing or risk being suspended without pay this fall.The city has struggled to increase inoculation rates, with more than 40% of the total population still unvaccinated.At the same time, the extremely contagious delta variant of COVID-19 is causing a slow but steady surge in coronavirus cases across New York.The city’s seven-day average test positivity rate reached 2.55% on Wednesday, the highest in months, while another 108 people were admitted to hospitals for COVID-19, according to Health Department data.

Other states are seeing even more dire coronavirus outbreaks, driving the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to drop new guidelines Tuesday recommending that any parts of the U.S. with “high or substantial” COVID-19 transmissibility rates reinstate face mask mandates for all public indoor settings, regardless of people’s vaccination status.

Even though all five boroughs of the city fall within the “high or substantial” transmissibility bracket, de Blasio said in Wednesday’s briefing that he’s not pulling the trigger on reintroducing mandatory indoor masking just yet.“We are assessing the new information from the CDC right now. We got it less than 24 hours ago, and it is complicated information so our health team is reviewing it,” he said. “We’ll have more to say on it in the next few days.”

Local public health experts have called on de Blasio for weeks to reintroduce mandatory indoor masking, citing the delta variant’s disproportionate ability to infect vaccinated individuals who can then unknowingly spread it.But de Blasio has maintained that he wants to prioritize vaccinations above mitigation tactics, arguing it would be unfair to make inoculated New Yorkers wear masks again simply to protect those who are refusing to get their shots.

De Blasio demurred when asked Wednesday if the new monetary incentive is unfair to New Yorkers who got vaccinated months ago without any perks.“Congratulations, you got vaccinated. You were protected from COVID. It was free. It was the right thing to do for yourself, for your family, for your community,” he said. “You did the right thing and the reward is you were kept safe, and you’re alive because of it.”

De Blasio’s foot-dragging on masking aggravated lawmakers who are saying the city can reintroduce indoor masking and focus on boosting vaccination rates at the same time.“We need the State and City to issue clear guidance *today* for NYers to wear masks in indoor public places,” tweeted Manhattan Councilmember Mark Levine, who chairs the Council’s Health Committee. “We can’t afford any further delay.”Levine’s sentiment was shared by Dr. Rochelle Walensky, President Biden’s CDC director, who said in an interview Wednesday that a combination of indoor masking and vaccination efforts could quickly bring the country’s recent delta spike under control.

There has been a “900% increase” in illegal aliens testing positive for COVID within the first two weeks of July at the Rio Grande border entrance.

The highly contagious group of foreigners who the Biden regime is welcoming to America are infecting our border agents and their families.

Yesterday, 100 Percent Fed Up shared a report from US Border Patrol Chief Brian Hastings, who told KURV radio that 44 of his border agents have recently been infected with COVID, and 5 have been hospitalized. According to Hastings, they’ve lost 2 US Border agents to COVID. The Border Patrol chief blames the incredibly high infection rate of illegal aliens swarming their borders.

There’s no question that under the leadership of Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and Democrat majorities in the House and Senate, Americans are no longer feeling safe. It’s obvious how easy the new Biden-Harris Obama-Harris regime is making it for people from around the world to come to America. There is no longer a need for health exams or criminal background checks. If you live in another country and can make it to our southern border, you simply need to cross the border—our US Border agents will load you safely into a van where you’ll receive toiletries and snacks from Catholic Social Services or other “religious” groups who will give you what you need.

Once you cross the US border, you might receive a health check, although it’s very likely the border agents are too busy changing diapers to take your temperature. You probably won’t receive a criminal background check, but you will receive free transportation to a red state that needs more Democrat voters.

Of course, once you get to your new pre-determined home, you’ll need to get on the government dole. Once you see how easy it is to rely on the American taxpayer to pay your bills, you may decide to take an extended vacation. As long as you vote Democrat in every election, you can continue to eat, sleep, get free health care, and go to school in America while never having to worry about becoming a contributing member of society.

Former President Donald Trump issued a statement on Thursday in which he said that the U.S. had secured the respect of Russian President Vladimir Putin as the result of a meeting that he had with the Russian leader in 2018.

“As President, I had a great and very productive meeting in Helsinki, Finland, with President Putin of Russia. Despite the belated Fake News portrayal of the meeting, the United States won much, including the respect of President Putin and Russia. Because of the phony Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, made-up and paid for by the Democrats and Crooked Hillary Clinton, the United States was put at a disadvantage—a disadvantage that was nevertheless overcome by me,” Trump said. “As to who do I trust, they asked, Russia or our “Intelligence” from the Obama era, meaning people like Comey, McCabe, the two lovers, Brennan, Clapper, and numerous other sleezebags, or Russia, the answer, after all that has been found out and written, should be obvious. Our government has rarely had such lowlifes as these working for it. Good luck to Biden in dealing with President Putin—don’t fall asleep during the meeting, and please give him my warmest regards!”

Trump’s comments came as Biden, who is currently overseas during his first foreign trip since being inaugurated earlier this year, is slated to meet with Putin on June 16 in Geneva, Switzerland.