Biden vaccine victories build on Trump team's work Dan Diamond and Isaac Stanley-Becker, The Washington Post March 11, 2021 FacebookTwitterEmail President Joe Biden listens Wednesday as leaders from Johnson & Johnson and Merck spoke during an event at the White House.Washington Post photo by Jabin Botsford WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden beckoned leaders of two of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies to the White House on Wednesday and credited his administration for the "nearly unprecedented collaboration" between the longtime rivals, Merck and Johnson & Johnson, now jointly producing acoronavirus vaccine. But the breakthrough touted by Biden was first conceived by Trump officials last year, culminating in a Jan. 4 conference call arranged between Merck and Johnson & Johnson's senior leaders, said four Trump administration officials with knowledge of the efforts.