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| White House distances itself from extraordinary Navarro op-ed criticizing Fauci | White House distances itself from extraordinary Navarro op-ed criticizing Fauci |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| The White House on Wednesday moved to distance itself from an extraordinary op-ed in USA Today in which Peter Navarro, President Trump’s trade adviser, heavily criticized Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious-disease official, over his handling of the coronavirus crisis. | The White House on Wednesday moved to distance itself from an extraordinary op-ed in USA Today in which Peter Navarro, President Trump’s trade adviser, heavily criticized Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious-disease official, over his handling of the coronavirus crisis. |
| “The Peter Navarro op-ed didn’t go through normal White House clearance processes and is the opinion of Peter alone,” White House spokeswoman Alyssa Farah said in a tweet, adding: “@realDonaldTrump values the expertise of the medical professionals advising his Administration.” | “The Peter Navarro op-ed didn’t go through normal White House clearance processes and is the opinion of Peter alone,” White House spokeswoman Alyssa Farah said in a tweet, adding: “@realDonaldTrump values the expertise of the medical professionals advising his Administration.” |
| In the USA Today piece — with the headline “Anthony Fauci has been wrong about everything I have interacted with him on” — Navarro cited several instances when he had disagreed with the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who has been a key player in the administration’s response to the pandemic. | In the USA Today piece — with the headline “Anthony Fauci has been wrong about everything I have interacted with him on” — Navarro cited several instances when he had disagreed with the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who has been a key player in the administration’s response to the pandemic. |
| “So when you ask me whether I listen to Dr. Fauci’s advice, my answer is: only with skepticism and caution,” Navarro wrote. | “So when you ask me whether I listen to Dr. Fauci’s advice, my answer is: only with skepticism and caution,” Navarro wrote. |
| Asked Wednesday about the op-ed, Trump told reporters at a White House event, “I get along very well with Dr. Fauci.” | |
| “That’s Peter Navarro, but I have a very good relationship with Dr. Fauci,” Trump said when pressed again on his thoughts about the piece. | |
| Despite the White House’s posture on Wednesday, Navarro’s op-ed in some way echoed Trump’s comments during a Fox News interview Thursday with Sean Hannity, when he said Fauci “is a nice man, but he’s made a lot of mistakes.” | |
| Fauci hasn’t spoken with Trump since June, The Washington Post has reported. | |
| White House effort to undermine Fauci is criticized by public health experts, scientists and Democrats | White House effort to undermine Fauci is criticized by public health experts, scientists and Democrats |
| While White House officials have undermined Fauci before, the article by Navarro marks one of the most public attacks by a high-ranking official. Navarro has also worked on the administration’s response to the pandemic, particularly on supply chain issues. | While White House officials have undermined Fauci before, the article by Navarro marks one of the most public attacks by a high-ranking official. Navarro has also worked on the administration’s response to the pandemic, particularly on supply chain issues. |
| White House aides previously circulated talking points questioning statements Fauci has made about the novel coronavirus, which Navarro repeated in the article. | White House aides previously circulated talking points questioning statements Fauci has made about the novel coronavirus, which Navarro repeated in the article. |
| Among the criticisms listed by the White House officials and Navarro is that Fauci didn’t urge caution when the cases were first reported in China in January, that he gave varied advice on face masks and that he has said that he didn’t believe there was concrete scientific evidence to support that hydroxychloroquine is an effective treatment against the coronavirus. | Among the criticisms listed by the White House officials and Navarro is that Fauci didn’t urge caution when the cases were first reported in China in January, that he gave varied advice on face masks and that he has said that he didn’t believe there was concrete scientific evidence to support that hydroxychloroquine is an effective treatment against the coronavirus. |
| Dan Scavino, the White House social media director and deputy chief of staff for communications, late Sunday shared a cartoon on his Facebook page mocking Fauci. It depicted Fauci as a faucet spewing cold water on the economy, with phrases written alongside, including “schools stay closed this fall,” “indefinite lockdown” and “no NFL season.” | Dan Scavino, the White House social media director and deputy chief of staff for communications, late Sunday shared a cartoon on his Facebook page mocking Fauci. It depicted Fauci as a faucet spewing cold water on the economy, with phrases written alongside, including “schools stay closed this fall,” “indefinite lockdown” and “no NFL season.” |
| A White House official said Wednesday that Navarro “went rogue” by writing the op-ed. | A White House official said Wednesday that Navarro “went rogue” by writing the op-ed. |
| “The White House does not stand by these unauthorized opinions,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal White House dynamics. | “The White House does not stand by these unauthorized opinions,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal White House dynamics. |