Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Fire Fauci?: Trump Hints To Supporters Of Post-Election Plan
AP: Trump Threatens To Fire Fauci In Rift With Disease Expert
President Donald Trump is suggesting that he will fire Dr. Anthony Fauci after Tuesday’s election, as his rift with the nation’s top infectious disease expert widens while the nation sees its most alarming outbreak of the coronavirus since the spring. Speaking at a campaign rally in Opa-locka, Florida, Trump expressed frustration that the surging cases of the virus that has killed more than 231,000 people in the United States this year remains prominent in the news, sparking chants of “Fire Fauci” from his supporters. (Miller, 11/1)
Fox News: Trump’s Comment At Rally Raises Speculation About Fauci’s Future At NIAID
“Don’t tell anybody, but let me wait until a little bit after the election,” Trump told the crowd. "I appreciate the advice." Forbes reported that Trump signed an executive order on Oct. 21 that creates a federal employee called “Schedule F,” which opens up these workers to the possibility of being easily fired by the administration. The report imagined that Fauci’s position as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases could eventually be deemed a Schedule F position. (Aaro, 11/1)
Bloomberg: ‘Fire Fauci’ Chant Erupts At Trump Rally As Tensions Simmer
A “Fire Fauci” chant erupted at one of President Donald Trump’s campaign rallies, with the president quipping that he’d wait until after the election if he were to do anything. The chant, which started shortly after midnight Monday morning, was the latest development in Trump’s ongoing critique of Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who was once a prominent figure in Trump’s coronavirus response but who has since been marginalized. (Parker and Wingrove, 11/2)
And more from Fauci's interview and the White House's reaction —
The Washington Post: Fauci Warns Of Covid-19 Surge, Offers Blunt Assessment Of Trump's Response
President Trump’s repeated assertions the United States is “rounding the turn” on the novel coronavirus have increasingly alarmed the government's top health experts, who say the country is heading into a long and potentially deadly winter with an unprepared government unwilling to make tough choices. “We’re in for a whole lot of hurt. It’s not a good situation,” Anthony S. Fauci, the country’s leading infectious-disease expert, said in a wide-ranging interview late Friday. “All the stars are aligned in the wrong place as you go into the fall and winter season, with people congregating at home indoors. You could not possibly be positioned more poorly.” (Dawsey and Abutaleb, 10/31)
The Hill: Fauci Rips White House Coronavirus Approach
In a broad interview with the paper, Fauci warned of the country reaching a point where it could see more than 100,000 coronavirus cases recorded daily if it does not reverse course quickly when it comes to public health practices. His comments come shortly after the country recorded a surge in COVID-19 infections last week and as multiple states have reported record numbers of cases in recent weeks. Fauci said in the interview that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s campaign “is taking it seriously from a public health perspective,” while President Trump is “looking at it from a different perspective” by focusing on “the economy and reopening the country.” (Folley, 11/1)
CNN: White House Rips Fauci After Criticism Of Atlas And Trump's Pandemic Response
The White House on Saturday unleashed on Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country's leading infectious disease expert, following his comments to the Washington Post that criticized the Trump administration's response to the pandemic, including Dr. Scott Atlas, who the President has relied on for advice on handling the coronavirus. "It's unacceptable and breaking with all norms for Dr. Fauci, a senior member of the President's Coronavirus Taskforce and someone who has praised President (Donald) Trump's actions throughout this pandemic, to choose three days before an election to play politics," White House deputy press secretary Judd Deere said in a statement to CNN on Saturday evening. (Mena, 11/1)
