Although Anthony Fauci has advised seven Presidents in his long career as the leading immunologist of the USA, all since Ronald Reagan, although he has received numerous awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, although he has dedicated his life to serving the common good, most people will probably remember his disputes with Donald Trump in the future.
As president, he wanted to make the population believe, among other things, that the corona virus would disappear again in a flash. He once suggested that the virus could be fought by injecting disinfectants. It was up to the scientist Fauci in such cases to publicly contradict the President, which enraged him.
Earlier this week, Fauci said he would step down as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in December. The same applies to his role as Chief Medical Advisor to the President. Fauci is 81 years old. He said it was time to move on to the next chapter in his career.
There is probably no better known scientist in the USA. In 1968, Fauci joined the National Institutes of Health, the national center for biomedical research. Since then he has published tirelessly, with more than a thousand scientific texts as author, co-author or editor. According to American media, Fauci works non-stop, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year.
However, that is not entirely true. Because: In the summer of 2020 he was a guest at a Washington Nationals baseball game. He was asked there to perform the ceremonial first throw. In a spectacularly lousy attempt, Fauci missed the catcher by several yards. As excellent as he is as a scientist, he is miserable as a baseball player.
His scientific brilliance, which has been proven many times over, was repeatedly questioned by Republican politicians during the corona crisis. They wanted to lift all restrictions as quickly as possible, which Fauci warned against. This made him an enemy for some Republicans. Especially with the Senator Rand Paul, he delivered tough arguments. Once, when he called him a liar in a congressional hearing, the ever-gentle Fauci said in a voice of coldness and anger, “If anyone’s lying here, Senator, it’s you.”
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However, it is also undisputed that Fauci made mistakes in dealing with the pandemic. He initially said there was no need to wear a mask in public. In addition, like many other scientists, he did not initially recognize that the symptom-free infected people in particular spread the virus. He publicly admitted both mistakes.
Fauci wanted to resign at the end of Trump’s presidency. The hostilities from the President and other Republicans had led to him receiving death threats on a regular basis. After Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election, his team first contacted Fauci, reports the Washington Post. Could he please continue? Fauci agreed.
At the end of 2021, a man was arrested in the state of Iowa who was traveling to the capital from California. A rifle, ammunition and a list of people he intended to kill were found in his luggage. At the top of the list: Joe Biden and Anthony Fauci.
In the coming months he wants to help to find his successor. And then? “I’m not retiring in the classic sense,” Fauci said. Rather, he wants to travel, write and, he also said, “inspire the next generation to get involved”.