Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Anthony Fauci (L), speaks as response coordinator for the White House Coronavirus Task Force, Deborah Birx observes during the daily briefing on the new coronavirus.
Mandel Ngan | AFP | fake pictures
Dr. Anthony Fauci, a White House coronavirus adviser, said Friday that he and his family are receiving hate mail and “serious threats” from people angry at his advice on the pandemic.
“There are people who are very angry to think that I am interfering with their lives because I am pushing a public health agenda,” he said during a podcast interview with CNN commentator David Axelrod. “The type of mail not only hate, but also serious threats against me is not good.”
Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and his family have received security details after threats were made against his wife and daughters.
“I mean, really? Is this the United States of America? But it’s real. It really is real,” he said.
Fauci revealed that he had previously been the target of his work to find treatments for HIV / AIDS. However, he said “it is really a different magnitude now because [of] the amount of anger. “
“I have seen a side of society that I suppose is understandable, but it is a bit disturbing,” he added.
Fauci has become one of the nation’s most trusted and recognizable infectious disease experts. Known for his heartfelt advice, Fauci has often opposed President Donald Trump in recommending school closings, state closings, and the use of face masks in public areas where social distancing is not possible. He was also a key adviser to the White House in recommending the closure of businesses at the start of the outbreak in the United States.
He told Axelrod that the attacks are a reflection of the “division of our society at the political level.” He stated that the coronavirus pandemic is a public health problem that should not be politicized.
In the past, President Donald Trump and other White House officials have criticized Fauci’s advice on Covid-19. During an interview earlier this month with Sean Hannity of Fox News, Trump said that Dr. Fauci is a good man, but he has made many mistakes. “
“They have been wrong about many things, including facial masks,” Trump said. “Maybe they are wrong, maybe not. Many of them said not to wear a mask, not to wear a mask. Now they are saying to wear a mask. Many mistakes were made, many mistakes were made.” “
Fauci, who is a key member of the White House coronavirus task force, also was not invited to Trump’s press conferences on the pandemic this week.
“What we are talking about is the fundamental principles of public health and I don’t see how people can be animosity to that,” he said. “Hostility against public health problems is difficult to understand not only, but even difficult to process.”
Fauci said he understands the negative economic consequences of closing the country for an extended period of time. He, along with other health officials, are working to reopen the United States safely “in a measured manner.”
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