Fauci’s hot-mic outburst is exactly what happens when a pandemic gets politicised

Anthony Fauci walks a tightrope between medical expert and politician, a gruelling position to be in, says Harriet Sinclair

Fauci was exasperated at the lack of knowledge displayed by a senator (EPA)

The more I watch Anthony Fauci’s “hot mic” moment (and I have watched it numerous times), the more I’m convinced that the nation’s top infectious diseases expert knew very well the sound was on – and that his description of GOP senator Roger Marshall as a “moron” would be heard by all.

Fauci had just been questioned by the Republican senator over his finances, which, he repeatedly told Marshall, were a matter of public knowledge. Asked about the “hot mic” moment that saw him end the pair’s back-and-forth with a well-timed “What a moron. Jesus Christ,” Fauci told MSNBC News that he had simply been stunned by the senator’s lack of knowledge.

Marshall “was totally implying that, and he made the statement that we can’t get your financial statement. It was stunning to me that a United States senator doesn’t realise that my financial statement is public knowledge. It was just like, ‘Where have you been?’” Fauci said.

He didn’t offer an apology for his comments, and anyone who has been following his increasingly politicised role in the pandemic will be utterly unsurprised.

Fauci, whose name was unknown to the average American citizen prior to the pandemic, has gone from respected infectious diseases specialist to pillioried pariah – that is, at least, in some Republican circles, and thanks in large part to politicians who have called into question the nature of Fauci’s role.

Among those is, of course, Rand Paul, the senator for Kentucky, who also clashed with Fauci during the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions hearing, and branded the infectious diseases expert “juvenile” for linking him to death threats he has received.

“Does he not realise I have people arrested once every month or two who have threatened to attack me, plus I have been attacked, and he’s going to come and blame his attacks on me? It wasn’t fair. It was a cheap shot. But it was a cheap shot by a politician, not a scientist,” Paul said.

If Fauci has indeed become a politician, it’s the result of having to tread a thin line between issuing medical advice and giving the public guidance they are actually likely to follow. A task not made any easier by his other job of dealing with whichever politician he is saddled with at any given time.

This is an expert who, let’s not forget, witnessed the then commander-in-chief suggest mid-pandemic that Covid-19 was close to disappearing, before later suggesting injecting disinfectant to protect against the virus. As someone who’s reported on the US response to the Covid pandemic since the start, I’m not surprised Fauci finally lashed out on the so-called hot mic; indeed, I’m merely impressed he didn’t say worse.

Yours,

Harriet Sinclair

US news editor (west coast)