Interview
Dr Fauci: follow the science
- Dr. Anthony Fauci served under seven U.S. presidents, leading federal responses to HIV/AIDS, Ebola, and Zika prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.
- During the pandemic, Fauci became a polarized figure, facing personal attacks and misinformation campaigns from political figures aligned with the Trump administration.
- Fauci explicitly rejected the notion that public health officials can remain entirely apolitical when "totally politically motivated inaccuracies" are introduced into the discourse.
- Fauci emphasized that scientific validity relies on data and evidence, not on "one person's word" or political authority.
- When new information evolved during the outbreak, Fauci modified his public health positions based on emerging science, a process he notes was incorrectly interpreted by critics as "flip-flopping."
- Serving on the White House Coronavirus Task Force, Fauci felt deep discomfort correcting the President, noting that contradicting the leader of a "politically polarized" institution created a "groundswell of antithesis" from far-right groups.
- Fauci stated he holds "phenomenal respect" for U.S. institutions, including the presidency, but felt compelled to prioritize scientific accuracy over political alignment.
- Despite the hostility, Fauci urged qualified young scientists to enter public service rather than retreat to laboratory research, warning that avoiding the field due to his experience would be a loss for society.
- Fauci reported that death threats against scientists and their families have become "quite common" rather than rare, describing the trend as "very disturbing."
- He characterized current public discourse as being dominated by "significant divisiveness" where public health issues are distorted by political ideology.
- Unlike previous crises involving HIV, Ebola, and Zika, the pandemic saw "profound difference" in which objective facts were rejected by large segments of the population in favor of untrue claims.