Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) on Wednesday blasted Dr. Anthony Fauci, saying the nation’s top immunologist “selectively lied to the American public about the coronavirus and what was needed for our national recovery.”
In a Fox News op-ed, Rubio noted that Fauci and other top scientists told Americans for months that about 60 to 70 percent of the U.S. population would need to develop antibodies—either through getting COVID-19 or taking the vaccine—in order for the country to reach herd immunity.
But in a recent New York Times interview, “Dr. Fauci admitted that he believes the real number is in fact significantly higher — perhaps 75 to 90 percent — and he declined to be forthright because he felt the country wasn’t ready to hear it. Only now did he say that he feels he has the freedom to ‘nudge this up a bit’ without discouraging the nation,” Rubio wrote.
“I am sure that Dr. Fauci — the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases — made the decision to mislead with nothing but good intentions. However, let’s be clear about what he was doing: lying to the American people in order to manipulate their behavior,” Rubio wrote.
“The American people deserve the truth; they also deserve accountability. When elected representatives make decisions, they can be held responsible by the public. But when public health officials with decades of experience and leadership within our nation’s institutions short-circuit the political process and make these decisions themselves, they deny the American people that same opportunity — and to change course if desired.”
Rubio: Dr. Fauci Lied About COVID-19 To Manipulate Americans’ Behavior | The Daily Wire