Fauci v. Fauci: How America’s infectious disease chief evolved his pandemic advice justthenews.com/politics-polic…
“If you had a process that was ongoing and you started mitigation earlier, you could have saved lives," Fauci told CNN's Jake Tapper, suggesting “there was a lot of pushback about shutting things down” early in the pandemic.
But a review of more than 36 public and media appearances and writings by Fauci, however, shows the nation’s infectious disease chief didn’t publicly embrace firm social distancing, bans on flights or cruises, or other strict measures during many opportunities in Feb or March.
In fact, during those two months he called the idea of banning restaurant eating “overkill,” urged healthy people to still go on cruises, and suggested there was no long-term benefit to shutting down domestic air travel, the review showed.
Fauci Jan 21: “This is not a major threat to the people of the United States and this is not something that the citizens of the United States should be worried about right now,”
Fauci late Feb: Told NBC that Americans should go about their normal lifestyles.
Fauci late Feb: Told NBC that Americans should go about their normal lifestyles.
Fauci Feb. 25: It’s not “absolutely necessary” to impose social distancing yet.
Fauci March 8: “If you are a healthy young person, there is no reason if you want to go on a cruise ship, go on a cruise ship,”
Fauci March 8: “If you are a healthy young person, there is no reason if you want to go on a cruise ship, go on a cruise ship,”
Fauci Feb 7: “If there is... a broad pandemic... travel restrictions are not going to help...You can’t just travel-restrict everyone.”
Fauci March 15: “I can tell you that has not been seriously considered,” he said on a Sunday talk show when asked about a domestic flight ban.
Fauci March 15: “I can tell you that has not been seriously considered,” he said on a Sunday talk show when asked about a domestic flight ban.
Fauci March 15: Urging Americans to stop going to restaurants would be “overkill,” though he added he himself was avoiding eateries to avoid coming in contact with someone who had the disease.
Fauci Feb. 25: “We are reasonably well prepared. We have had a pandemic preparedness plan that we put together years ago.”
In the same interview, Fauci said “We need to start thinking about that (social distancing, closing schools, working from home) now, even though it isn’t absolutely necessary to implement that now.”
Fauci March 12: Appearing for congressional testimony, he changed his tune on preparedness, at least when it came to widespread testing, which he said was a “failing” of the American system.
“We’re not set up for that,” he said. "Do I think we should be? Yes. But we’re not."
“We’re not set up for that,” he said. "Do I think we should be? Yes. But we’re not."
Fauci March 23: Fauci backed away from preparedness, suggesting in Science Magazine a post-mortem of COVID-19 might show the plan crafted over many years was insufficient.
“It’s almost like the fog of war," he said. "After the war is over, you then look back and say, ‘Wow, this plan, as great as it was, didn’t quite work once they started that throwing hand grenades at us.' It really is similar to that.”
