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Donald Trump and Anthony Fauci: The immunologist looks forward to a return to the facts after the departure of the former president
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JONATHAN ERNST / REUTERS
The USA has recorded more than 24 million corona cases so far.
Despite the dramatic situation, Donald Trump criticized his expert Anthony Fauci as a "panic maker".
At his first briefing on behalf of the new US administration, the immunologist spoke about his difficult relationship with the former president.
Fauci was relieved that he was allowed to let the facts speak for himself again after Trump left the White House.
It was "liberating" for him to be able to speak about the scientific findings on the corona pandemic without worrying about possible negative "repercussions", Fauci told journalists in the White House on Thursday.
The virologist had repeatedly drawn Trump's displeasure with his unvarnished assessments of the pandemic.
Fauci, who is the head of the National Institute for Allergies and Infectious Diseases, was a former member of Trump's advisory board.
Now he is advising Joe Biden, who took office on Wednesday.
"That was really uncomfortable because it wasn't based on scientific facts."
Anthony Fauci
With Trump there were moments when things were communicated that were not based on scientific facts, Fauci said.
As an example, he cited Trump's ongoing promotion of the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine as a corona drug, although its effectiveness has not been proven.
"That was really uncomfortable because it wasn't based on scientific facts," said Fauci.
On another occasion, Trump brought disinfectant spraying into play as a possible corona healing method.
With Trump, he did not have the feeling that he could contradict him without negative consequences, said Fauci.
That will be different with Biden, as the president assured him in a conversation a few minutes ago, said the immunologist.
In the future, action and communication would always be transparent and based on scientific findings, promised Fauci.
Swipes against Trump's pandemic policy
Fauci also handed out a swipe at Trump's sometimes improvised pandemic policy.
When asked about the participation of the Amazon group in the vaccination campaign, Fauci replied that he could not say anything.
"One of the innovations with this administration is not to guess when you don't have an answer," said Fauci.
The 80-year-old Fauci is the head of the National Institute for Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and is an expert of integrity.
Because Fauci was also not afraid to contradict Trump, he was not invited to the White House for a long time to speak publicly about the status of the corona pandemic.
When a journalist asked whether he was back after months in exile, Fauci laughed and said: "I think so."
Fauci had already spoken at a meeting of the World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday to discuss Biden's return of the US to cooperation with the Geneva-based institution.
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