AP FACT CHECK: Biden and his shifting goalposts on schools

WASHINGTON (AP) — How do you define success when it comes to reopening schools in the pandemic? President Joe Biden and his aides are having difficulty settling on an answer to that question.

At his town-hall forum Tuesday night, Biden denied that his administration ever thought one day of classroom instruction a week would be enough to declare victory in his pledge to get most schools for younger children open by spring. That's dubious, given the conflicting account provided by his press secretary last week.

Also at the event, Biden at one point said no vaccines had been deployed when he took office. It was a one-off slip. At other times in his remarks, he said millions of doses had been administered during the Trump administration and more accurately characterized the conditions he inherited.

From the CNN event in Milwaukee:

SCHOOLS

BIDEN, asked about assertions from the White House that at least one day a week of classroom schooling would deliver on his reopening pledge: "No, that’s not true. That’s what was reported. That’s not true. That was a mistake in the communication."

THE FACTS: That's a stretch. A mere mistake by the White House could have been corrected by the White House days ago.

The argument that four days of schooling at home and one in the classroom could constitute success drew plenty of criticism. So the White House has changed its tune on the 100-day goal and is aiming higher.

A week ago, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Biden's goal "is to have the majority of schools — so, more than 50% — open by day 100 of his presidency. And that means some teaching in classrooms. So, at least one day a week. Hopefully, it’s more.”

A day later, she said the once-a-week minimum is “the bar of where we’d like the majority of...