Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Trump Officials Are Attacking Anthony Fauci. Thousands Of Doctors Are Hitting Back.

Trump Officials Are Attacking Anthony Fauci. Thousands Of Doctors Are Hitting Back.

"You cannot have a competent public health response without a clear communication strategy," one top medical expert said of the White House’s moves against Fauci. "This isn't it."

More than 1,000 health officials came to the aid of Dr. Anthony Fauci after a White House official published an op-ed trying to discredit the nation’s top health expert who has helped steer the country through the coronavirus pandemic so far.

Peter Navarro, an assistant to the president and a director of the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, wrote an op-ed in USA Today criticizing Fauci. The op-ed said Fauci has “been wrong on everything” that Navarro has interacted with him on.

Thousands of doctors are now ridiculing Navarro’s claims and responding with a broad defense of Fauci, who has led the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984.

Georges Benjamin, the executive director of the American Public Health Association, told BuzzFeed News that White House aides trying to discredit Fauci only hurts the Trump administration.

"First of all, the people speaking out against Tony Fauci have absolutely no medical credibility, no public health credibility, and frankly, no policy credibility when it comes to any kind of disaster or situation involving human health,” Benjamin told BuzzFeed News. "They are undermining not just Fauci but everyone in the administration. You cannot have a competent public health response without a clear communication strategy. This isn't it."

Benjamin also spoke to Navarro’s assertion of Fauci “flip-flopping on the use of masks.” In the first months of the pandemic, US public health officials who were worried about shortages discouraged the use of surgical masks for everyone but medical personnel. But in April, the guidance switched to encouraging cloth masks for everyone after evidence emerged that face coverings lowered the risk of infected people transmitting COVID-19.

"The reason Tony has changed his outlook on the virus is that we’ve learned more about it, obviously. I wouldn't say all the same things now I said in the first months,” said Benjamin. “We learn and we change what we do. That is how infectious diseases work."

Fauci, in an unusually explicit public defense of his work and dig at those attacking him, told the Atlantic on Wednesday that the attempts to undermine him are “bizarre.”

“I think if you talk to reasonable people in the White House, they realize that was a major mistake on their part because it doesn’t do anything but reflect poorly on them,” Fauci said. He added: “I can’t explain Peter Navarro. He’s in a world by himself.”

Navarro, an economist best known for promoting his protectionist views on trade with China far removed from those of most trade experts, has also emerged as a fierce advocate of hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19. The FDA pulled its emergency authorization of the drug last month after studies showed it offered patients no benefits and raised the risks of heart arrhythmia.

Benjamin is joined by thousands of other doctors in publicly defending Fauci. The Infectious Diseases Society of America released a statement Wednesday speaking on behalf of its 12,000 medical doctors, research scientists, and public health experts, saying they won’t be “sidelined” and calling the campaign to discredit Fauci “disturbing.”

“Despite the nation’s vast resources and abilities, more than 135,000 people in America have died from COVID-19 - more than any other country, and the numbers keep rising," the statement read. "Every day now brings a new high in the number of newly infected people and deaths. This is a full-blown crisis, unlike any America has ever faced, and it needs to be treated as such.”

The statement added, “If we have any hope of ending this crisis, all of America must support public health experts, including Dr. Fauci, and stand with science.”

Fauci, known before the coronavirus pandemic for his work leading the charge to research treatments during the AIDS epidemic, also has the backing of the HIV Medicine Association, an organization representing the interests of medical professionals who practice HIV medicine.

In a statement, the organization said Fauci’s “leadership and support of a rigorous scientific process has been critical to transforming HIV from a death sentence to a chronic condition, saving millions of lives worldwide. His voice and expertise need to be amplified not silenced if we are going to get control of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has now taken the lives of more than 135,000 Americans and more than 570,000 people worldwide.”

The American Society for Microbiology also wrote a letter Tuesday to Vice President Mike Pence expressing its support for Fauci and other health officials “prioritizing science-based public health strategies to address the COVID-19 pandemic​.”

In a separate statement to BuzzFeed News, Sudip Parikh, CEO of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, called the "blatant attempts to discredit" Fauci "dismaying."

"Misleading attacks on Dr. Fauci’s credibility could have real consequences in prolonging this pandemic," he said.

During an unrelated White House event on Wednesday, President Donald Trump skirted questions on whether he’s OK with Navarro’s op-ed; he just described the nature of his relationship with Dr. Fauci.

“I get along very well with Dr. Fauci," Trump said. When pressed on the question again, “That’s Peter Navarro, but I have a very good relationship with Dr. Fauci.” Later, the president told reporters that Navarro made a statement “representing himself. He shouldn’t be doing that.”

But leading up to the op-ed, the White House sidelined Fauci when it issued a statement to the Washington Post on Saturday that said “several ... officials are concerned about the number of times Dr. Fauci has been wrong on things.”

Others close to the president have also pushed messages discrediting Fauci over the last several days, including longtime Trump adviser Dan Scavino, who posted on Facebook a cartoon ridiculing the health expert and accusing him of using the media to bring the economy to a halt. The piece was titled “Dr. Faucet.”

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
×