Anthony Fauci described the attacks on him by Republicans as ‘bizarre’, after a barrage of criticism from senior GOP figures.
The infectious disease expert who led the U.S. effort against Covid-19 was forced to defend himself after a former Trump official called him “the father of the real virus,” and Senator Lindsey Graham followed other Republicans to encourage Fauci – Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser and head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, to travel to the border between America and Mexico.
In Fox News, Fauci said he had become a scapegoat for right-wing figures.
“I was to them a symbol of what they do not like about something that has to do with things that are in conflict with them, something outside their own kingdom,” he said.
In a wave of tweets Graham, from South Carolina, told Fauci on Friday: “You have to go to the southern border and personally witness the largest super-distributor in the country.”
Graham refers to thousands of migrants detained in overcrowded conditions. The administration said asylum seekers are being tested for coronavirus upon arrival in the US. It was unclear what Graham was thinking when he visited Fauci.
“It’s a little bizarre, I would say,” Fauci said. ‘I mean … Lindsey Graham, who I like, he’s … you know, he’s a good person, I’ve been very, very good to him over the years, you know, and I’m comparing myself to things to do at the border? I mean, I have nothing to do with the border.
“If I’m down at the border, I’m not doing it.”
Fauci, 80, has served seven presidents since 1984, leading the fight against AIDS and HIV before becoming the trusted public face of efforts to curb the coronavirus pandemic.
Peter Navarro, who has served in various roles under Donald Trump, launched a bizarre outburst on Wednesday during an interview with Fox News.
Asked about Fauci’s remark that his pursuit of a ‘vaccine’ was the best decision [I] ever made “, Navarro said:” Fauci is a sociopath and a liar. He had nothing to do with the vaccine. The father of the vaccine is Donald J Trump.
‘Of what is Fauci the father? Fauci is the father of the real virus. ”
Fauci answers and asks, ‘How weird is that? Think about it for a moment. Isn’t that a little weird? I mean, come on. ‘
Last week, former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows accused Fauci of keeping quiet about conditions at the border. An Alabama congressman also asked Fauci to get involved. In February, Marco Rubio, a Florida senator, Fauci criticizedand said his job “is not to deceive or intimidate the American public”.
Fauci gestured when asked to respond.
“I am so busy doing important things to preserve the health and safety of the American people, that I can not bother to be distracted with these people doing these ad hominems,” he said.