DeSantis criticizes Trump’s claim of being unable to dismiss Fauci.
Gov. Ron DeSantis Slams Trump’s Defense of Fauci Firing
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) has strongly criticized former President Donald Trump’s recent claim that he was not ”allowed” to fire Dr. Anthony Fauci, the former White House chief medical adviser. Trump’s comments came during an interview on Hugh Hewitt’s radio show, where he was questioned about why he hadn’t dismissed Fauci.
“First of all, you’re not allowed. He’s civil service, and you’re not allowed to fire him,” Trump told Hewitt. “But forget that, because I don’t necessarily go by everything. But Dr. Fauci would tell me things, and I wouldn’t do them in many cases. But also, he wasn’t a big player in my administration.”
DeSantis, however, dismissed Trump’s defense, pointing out that it contradicted his previous statements about his relationship with Fauci.
“It’s important to point out for a long time that was not his excuse,” DeSantis told the Rubin Report. “His excuse had been that if you fired Fauci, both the Democrats and the media would have pitched a fit, which, of course, is 100% true.”
The governor emphasized that leadership sometimes requires making tough decisions, even if they face backlash.
“But that’s the price of leadership. You got to stand up and do what’s right,” the governor continued. “Clearly, he could have been fired from the White House Task Force. There was no obligation to run him out at press conference after press conference, have him doing media interviews.”
DeSantis has been a vocal critic of Fauci’s approach to the pandemic, defying his recommendations by reopening Florida’s businesses and easing restrictions earlier than most states. During an interview with Dave Rubin, DeSantis highlighted his state’s handling of the pandemic as he campaigns for the White House.
“During the height of the COVID stuff in 2020, Fauci would do local hits in Florida media attacking me for having schools open and some of these other stuff,” he said. “So, there was no obligation to do that. I think you could have also fired him from NIH because he had basically committed misconduct with the gain of function.”
Trump, in response to DeSantis’s previous criticisms, claimed that the governor actually “loves” Fauci.
“He shut down Florida. It was tight as a drum. He had vax lines. He was vaxxing everything. Now, he talks about the vaccinations this and that,” Trump said. “And let me tell you the other thing. I will send you, after this conversation, five articles about how much he loves Dr. Fauci. ‘I do what Dr. Fauci says. This is Ron DeSantimonious. I do what Dr. Fauci says.’ That’s what he says. And I’ve got the articles here. But he doesn’t like to go back.”
Trump also criticized DeSantis for the number of COVID-19 deaths in Florida, stating that the state ranked third-worst in terms of fatalities.
The ongoing dispute between DeSantis and Trump comes as COVID-19 cases continue to rise across the country, leading some communities to reinstate mask mandates and other health precautions. DeSantis, however, has made it clear that he will not reimpose lockdowns, mask mandates, or fines for non-compliance with coronavirus precautions.
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