Dr. Anthony Fauci (left), Ron Johnson.Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty; STR/NurPhoto via Getty
Dr.Anthony Faucihit back at Republican Ron Johnson’s claims that he had “overhyped” both AIDs and the COVID-19 pandemic, telling CNN’sState of the Unionon Sunday: “I don’t have any clue of what he’s talking about.”
Johnson, a 66-year-old Wisconsin senator with no background in science or medicine, made the remarks last week, telling Fox News’s Brian Kilmeade that the nation’s leading infectious disease expert is using “the exact same playbook” with COVID as he used when he lead research into treatments for HIV/AIDS.
“By the way, Fauci did the same exact thing with AIDS. He overhyped it. He created all kinds of fear, saying it could infect the entire population when it couldn’t, and he’s doing, he’s using the exact same playbook with COVID: ignoring therapy, pushing a vaccine,” Johnson said on Fox News, in an appearance that coincided with World AIDS Day.
Fauci has not, as Johnson suggested, ignored therapies to treat COVID-19 and has in fact urged hospitals touse more antibody treatments, like thoseused to treat former President Donald Trump, who was hospitalized with the virus in 2020.
Fauci continued: “Overhyping AIDS? It’s killed over 750,000 Americans and 36 million people worldwide. How do you overhype that? Overhyping COVID? It’s already killed 780,000 Americans and over 5 million people worldwide.”
Fauci, who is the longtime director of the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases, was instrumental in the American medical community’s research into how to treat HIV/AIDS. Despite that research and unlike COVID-19, there is currently no vaccine for HIV.
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“For his determined and aggressive efforts to help others live longer and healthier lives, I’m proud to award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Dr. Anthony S. Fauci,” Bush said at the time.
Johnson, meanwhile, has worked to advance severalCOVID-19 conspiracy theoriesand has amplifiedskepticismof the vaccines.
Johnson isn’t the only Republican to criticize Fauci.
The health official previously had testy exchanges with Sen.Rand Paulof Kentucky, with the two arguing over the pushto reopen schools, whether it was safe torelax restrictions on businesses, and why it’s necessary for people to be wearing masks after they get vaccinated.
Speaking onFace the Nationlast month, Fauci said his critics are trying to use him as a scapegoat in an attempt to discredit the science behind things like mask-wearing, social distancing, and vaccines.
source: people.com
