USA27 July, 20262 min read
Rand Paul Releases Anthony Fauci’s 2020-2022 Diaries Ahead of Senate Hearing on Wednesday
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Rand Paul released Fauci's diaries ahead of a Senate hearing. Fauci voiced growing disillusionment with Trump, citing rambling and incompetent messaging.
Paul releases Fauci diaries
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) released thousands of pages of Anthony Fauci’s diary entries from 2020 to 2022 ahead of Fauci’s scheduled appearance before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday.
The Hill reported Fauci wrote on March 22, 2020 that “Press is going wild with me,” as he described coverage in the Washington Post and the New York Times about his relationship with the POTUS.
The Washington Examiner said the documents were released as part of a 1,141-page release published by Rand Paul last week ahead of Fauci’s testimony on Wednesday.
The Guardian said the diaries show Fauci’s disillusionment with Donald Trump in the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, including Trump being branded “rambling” and “truly an obnoxious adolescent.”
Fauci vs Trump
In a late-night call on February 27, 2020, Fauci recounted trying to impress upon Trump the seriousness of the situation, warning that if the virus worsened after officials had downplayed the threat, it could create significant problems. The Guardian quoted Fauci writing that he “encouraged [Trump] not to underplay the seriousness of the situation” and said Fauci believed Trump heard him but “the next day, he again underplayed it.”
SSBCrack said Fauci described Trump in unflattering terms including “rambling,” “crazy,” “desperate,” “bumbling,” “incompetent,” “an idiot,” and “truly an obnoxious adolescent.” Forbes reported that in a May 2020 entry Fauci wrote, “the situation with my national and international fame is explosive and really unimaginable,” while also writing that he was “the most famous and talked about person in the country.”
Threats, hearing, accountability
The Hill said Fauci told Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) that there were “credible death threats, leading to the arrests of two individuals,” and that “Protective Services” was required “essentially all the time.”
The Guardian reported that at a hearing in January 2022 Fauci told Paul his attacks put him in danger, saying “kindl[ing] the crazies out there” and that he had “threats upon my life, harassment of my family and my children.”
The Washington Examiner said Paul characterized the documents as evidence Fauci misled Congress and placed personal interests above transparency, while noting Fauci had previously rejected Paul’s allegations.
Fox News said the diaries were released days before Fauci was scheduled to testify after being subpoenaed by Paul, and it described Fauci’s diary account of Trump telling him “We are counting on you” during White House meetings.