Marco Rubio accuses Anthony Fauci of “lying” to Americans on COVID-19

Republican Senator Marco Rubio on Wednesday accused Dr Anthony Fauci of lying to the public on his COVID-19 facemask measure. 

In an Op-ed for Fox News, Rubio wrote that he was “appalled by Fauci’s arrogance” , accusing him to be lying about the effectiveness of masks and the percent of the population that needs to be vaccinated.

Fauci is a member of the White House coronavirus task force and will serve as President-elect Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser when the new administration takes office on January 20.

“The story is straightforward. For most of this year, Dr. Fauci and other scientists in our public health establishment have been telling Americans that about 60-70% of the nation would need a vaccine in order for us to reach herd immunity and make the coronavirus a non-issue,” Rubio wrote.

“But, speaking with The New York Times, Dr. Fauci admitted that he believes the real number is in fact significantly higher, perhaps 75-90% — and he declined to be forthright because he felt the country wasn’t ready to hear it. Only now did he say that he feels he has the freedom to ‘nudge this up a bit’ without discouraging the nation”, he wrote further.

The Florida senator also noted that Fauci previously said in March that “there’s no reason to be walking around with a mask” to prevent the spread of the virus.

“I do not question Dr. Fauci’s motives — I trust they are noble — but I am appalled by his arrogance. If he wants to lead the nation, he should run for office. Otherwise, he should give us an honest and transparent reading of the science, not polling data, and let the rest of us — policymakers and the American people who have elected them — do our jobs,” he wrote.