Fauci: I Am Very Disturbed by the Intense Divisiveness in Our Country
If ever there was something where we should have pulled together, it should have been the deadly COVID pandemic, the doctor says
Fresh from his announcement that he is retiring from federal service, Dr Anthony Fauci has been making the rounds of the cable TV news programs.
In particular, the nation's preeminent public health expert — who has advised two US presidents through a worldwide pandemic — is lamenting the great hyperpartisanship and divisiveness which not only exists in the United States, but has extended to the response to that pandemic.
Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) since 1984, Fauci served in the White House to advise both Donald Trump — and now President Biden — to guide their response to the outbreak of COVID-19.
In particular, those on the political right both have spread — and been susceptible to — misinformation about the COVID-19 disease, and the vaccines used to deter infection. Those on the right often have been the ones least likely to seek vaccination.
“Well, my experiences go back, as you know, four decades of leadership at NIAID. Things have changed. The thing that bothers me a lot now, I mean, the idea of making sure we get younger generations, smart, enthusiastic people, involved in the field that I’m involved in, which is medicine, science and public health, I just am very disturbed by the intense divisiveness in our country,” Fauci said in an appearance on CNN. “And if ever there was a situation where we wanted everyone to pull together and recognize we’re dealing with common enemies which are these pathogens that cause outbreaks and have already, for example, with COVID, killed 1 million Americans, that is not time to have political ideation be separating us in what should be a common effort to end this. That’s not the case.
“So, when I reflect, I hope things improve, I’m fundamentally a cautious optimist, and I often say I look for the fact that hopefully the better angels in all of us will ultimately emerge and we’ll be a country that pulls together in the common enemy as opposed to one that seems to be fighting with each other,” added Fauci, who was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Republican President George W Bush for his work on HIV/AIDS.
Do you find this post of value?
Please consider supporting our work by joining our Patreon for as little as $5…
Also, please subscribe…