Trump calls Dr. Fauci “a bit of an alarmist,” but defends his “very good relationship” amid rumors of a smear campaign in the White House against the nation’s leading infectious disease expert.
- President Donald Trump addressed rumors of a breakup between the White House and Dr. Anthony Fauci in an interview on Sunday.
- “He’s a little alarmist, that’s fine,” Trump said of Fauci.
- He said Fauci “made some mistakes” insisted that their relationship is “very good”.
- Trump denied claims that his administration is campaigning against Fauci
- Fauci had previously said that the perceived White House attacks on him are “strange” and only damaging to Trump.
President Donald Trump called Dr. Anthony Fauci “a bit of an alarmist,” as the nation’s leading infectious disease expert continues to urge officials to strengthen health safety measures as the coronavirus pandemic continues.
Trump defended his relationship with Fauci during a Fox News interview on Sunday where he rejected rumors that his administration is campaigning against the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace asked the president to respond to a Facebook post by White House deputy chief of staff for communications Daniel Scavino, depicting Fauci as a tap and calling him a ‘dripper.’ and ‘alarmist’.
‘Well, I don’t know if he’s a loser. It’s a little alarmist, ” Trump replied. ‘It’s okay. A little alarmist.
“Dr. Fauci has made some mistakes, but I have a very good one, I spoke to him extensively yesterday, I have a very good relationship with Dr. Fauci,” he added.
President Donald Trump called Dr. Anthony Fauci “a bit of an alarmist” during a Fox News interview on Sunday, as the nation’s leading infectious disease expert continues to urge officials to strengthen health security measures as the pandemic progresses. of coronavirus continues.
Trump went on to list several of the “mistakes” he said Fauci had made since the pandemic began in March.
Dr. Fauci at first said, “This will pass. Don’t worry about it. This will pass.” I was wrong, ” he said.
Dr. Fauci said, “Don’t ban China. Don’t ban China.” I did. Then he admitted that he was right.
The president also claimed that Fauci had changed his stance on the masks, citing how in the early stages of the crisis he urged the public not to go out and buy N95 masks because they were in short supply and health professionals needed them.
He then noted that, in recent weeks, Fauci has strongly advocated the need for everyone to wear face covers, something the Trump administration has not mandated at the federal level.
Trump himself has repeatedly refused to wear a mask in public, and many of his supporters have followed suit.
Last week, Fauci recommended that governors and mayors “be as forceful as possible” for people to wear face covers.
Wallace pressured Trump by asking: “Why the hell would his administration be involved in a campaign right now to discredit Dr. Fauci?” – to which he immediately replied: “Because we are not.”
Trump insisted that his administration is not conducting a smear campaign to discredit Fauci. The couple appears at a White House coronavirus briefing in April
As of Sunday, more than 3.7 million cases of coronavirus have been reported in the US, with infections on the rise in 42 of 50 states
Coronavirus deaths also appear to be on the rise in recent weeks after holding steady
Fauci has previously criticized what he sees as White House attacks on him, calling them “strangers” and arguing that they are only detrimental to Trump.
“I can’t understand in my wildest dreams why they would want to do that,” Fauci told The Atlantic last week. ‘I think they now realize that this was not prudent, because it is only negatively reflected in them.
‘Finally, it hurts the president to do that. When the staff lets something like that out and the entire scientific and press community rejects it, it finally hurts the president. ‘
One of the most blatant attacks was a USA Today op-ed in which Trump’s trade adviser Peter Navarro said Fauci is wrong about “everything” about what has interacted with him.
On Sunday, Trump told Wallace that Navarro “shouldn’t be doing that.”
Wallace also made a point to remind Trump that he has also made mistakes in his response to the coronavirus crisis, to which the President replied, “I think everyone makes mistakes.”
When asked about his previous claim that the virus “will go away,” Trump replied, “In time I will be right.”
As of Sunday, there have been more than 3.7 million cases of coronavirus and 140,119 deaths across the country.
Cases have continued to rise in 42 of the 50 states for the past two weeks, with Texas, California, Florida and others in the Sun Belt breaking records every day.
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