Published 13:15 IST, June 3rd 2020
Anthony Fauci says his contact with Donald Trump has 'dramatically decreased'
Fauci, who is US govt top public health expert and a member of the national coronavirus taskforce, said that he was no longer in frequent contact with Trump.
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Anthony Fauci, who is US governments top public health expert and a member of the national coronavirus taskforce, reportedly said that he was no longer in frequent contact with President Donald Trump. While speaking to an international media outlet, Fauci on June 1 said that the task force meetings have not occurred as often lately and his meetings with Trump have also been ‘dramatically decreased’.
The top health expert noted that he and Trump used to have task force meetings daily, including on the weekend. Fauci also reportedly said that the two would also talk after meetings, estimating that a month ago, they met four times a week. However, in recent times, Trump and Fauci have not been in frequent contact, which is likely to spark fresh hearts that the health official is being frozen out of the White House.
Trump and Fauci, both have had a different approach towards coronavirus outbreak. Fauci has been warning against a rush to reopen America for business and social movements until federal guidelines have been met involving a sustained decrease in new cases and adequate testing and hospital facilities being available. However, despite the federal guidelines, Trump repeatedly diverged from his own leading expert and spent weeks urging state governors to reopen.
Fauci dampens Trump’s hype of HCQ
Fauci last month also warned that there is a real risk of triggering an outbreak that no one might be able to control. He said that the outbreak will not only lead to some suffering and death, but it could even set the country back on the road to get economic recovery. On the other hand, the US President has been promoting malaria drug hydroxychloroquine as a miracle cure. He apparently is also taking it himself, despite pessimistic recent studies. Fauci even tried tactfully to dampen the president’s hype of HCQ and the antiviral drug chloroquine.
Amid the unprecedented outbreak of deadly coronavirus, the relationship between both Fauci and Trump has been scrutinized. From rumours to infectious disease expert’s suspension to clashes in opinions, there have been many instances when both appeared at odds with the response to the coronavirus outbreak in the country. Several allies of Trump have reportedly criticised Fauci and called him an unelected bureaucrat.
(Image credit: AP)
13:15 IST, June 3rd 2020