Trump calls coronavirus expert Anthony Fauci a 'disaster'
Donald Trump in Miami town hall
US President Donald Trump Monday called coronavirus expert Anthony Fauci a "disaster", trying to reassure campaign workers he still has a path to victory on November 3 election.
Fauci, a key member of the White House coronavirus task force, has increasingly become a focus for the president's rancour as he bids to shape the messaging on the much-criticised federal response to the pandemic.
Trump took his frustration out on Fauci midway through a call intended to buck up his national team of campaign workers amid a spate of stories suggesting a campaign in turmoil.
"People are saying, 'Whatever -- just leave us alone.' They're tired of it. People are tired of hearing Fauci and all these idiots," the president said, according to several US media outlets.
"Fauci is a disaster. If I listened to him, we’d have 500,000 deaths," Trump said -- on a call with campaign workers which the campaign allowed reporters to join, adding Americans were fed up with pandemic restrictions.
"Fauci is a nice guy. He’s been here for 500 years," Trump sarcastically added.
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
How fast can the Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jet really fly?
)
Did China ask its people 'not to respond to aliens'? Origin of bizarre claim on social media
)
MS Dhoni-CSK Fallout? Report claims failed stake sale talks triggered rift
)
Scientists reveal the SAFEST COUNTRY when catastrophe strikes the planet
)
Serial killer on the loose in South Korea's Jeju Island? Fourth body found in three days as more than a dozen people go missing
)
2/3rd of glacier detached, collapsed: ISRO satellite images reveal what triggered Nepal floods
)
Trump once again claims without him there would be ‘no Israel right now’
)
Foreign espionage attacks against German companies surge to 37%, Bitkom report reveals
)
Blake Lively wins partial legal fee from Justin Baldoni after $8M request
)
Why is Pakistan deploying Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drones near India border?
)
'OH MY GOD! We've found other agents!': Investigators discover not one or two, almost 700 OpenAI AI agents went rogue, hacked Hugging Face
)
Lunar eclipse 2026: India timings, places to see and more. August Blood moon factsheet
)
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on global outreach tour
)
Both pilots killed as training aircraft crashes in Lucknow – What we know
)
16-year-old charged with preparing terror attack on kindergarten in Norway
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
How the S-400 protects itself from enemy attacks
)
Nepal floods: Over 165 dead, 400 missing; US, India, China, World Bank mobilise aid
)
India's multi-layered watch: The new surveillance war
)
5 doomsday planes spotted in US skies hours after CIA director's secret trip to Russia
)
9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed to finally face trial in 2028, nearly 27 years after horrific attacks
)
Islamabad hospital fire: What we know about one of the biggest facility that housed Imran Khan
)
Workers run for life while filming Nepal flash flood: Scary new visuals emerge from Rasuwa
)
Russian military planes enter South Korean air defence zone amid rising tensions with North Korea: What's happening
)
Ron Weasley Is Back! Rupert Grint set to return to Harry Potter universe on Broadway
)
400-year-old 'vampire' grave in Poland reveals non-existent genetic lineage
)
Dolly Parton, global icon and queen of country music, dies at 80
)
Nepal flash floods: Kailash Mansarovar yatra affected, close to 400 pilgrims out of contact
)
'If he is dead, they're putting on a pretty good show': Trump casts fresh doubt over Mojtaba Khamenei's fate
)
Man arrested near US Capitol with guillotine in pickup truck: What happened?
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
Why the Su-30MKI cockpit is painted bright turquoise green
Trump and Fauci, a member of his coronavirus task force, have been at odds over how best to handle a pandemic that has killed more than 219,000 people in the United States and weakened the former's re-election bid.
Fauci has openly complained about being cited in a Trump re-election campaign advertisement. He also said he wasn't surprised Trump himself contracted the virus.
Trump's rallies include many supporters not wearing masks and standing shoulder to shoulder at odds with the guidance of Fauci and other public health experts.
In stark contrast, Fauci is one of the most respected scientists in the United States and has served under Republican and Democratic presidents. He has been director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984.
Trump suggested he had avoided firing Fauci because of the negative blowback he would receive.
At various points during the pandemic response, Fauci has clarified or corrected Trump's public comments on the development of Covid-19 treatments and vaccines.
The tone between them has sometimes turned tense, as in April when Trump retweeted a post that contained the hashtag #FireFauci -- before reassuring the American people that "Tony" was doing a great job.
With nearly two weeks to go until Election Day, Democrat Joe Biden holds a lead in national opinion polls and in many battleground states where the election is likely to be decided.
(with inputs)