ANOTHER BRIX IN THE WALL  UPDATED 
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Dr. Fauci swooped in to defend coronavirus czar Dr. Birx after Trump called her 'pathetic' for acknowledging that the coronavirus pandemic is getting worse in the US
Lauren Frias 

Dr. Deborah Birx, White House coronavirus response coordinator, speaks during a coronavirus task force briefing at the White House, Saturday, April 4, 2020, in Washington. Associated Press/Patrick Semansky

Top US infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci defended White House coronavirus czar Dr. Deborah Birx after President Donald Trump criticized her for her stark assessment of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

On Sunday, Birx said that the US is entering a "new phase" of the pandemic, as surges in cases can be attributed to asymptomatic carriers who don't know they are infected and make it much more difficult to identify, isolate, and contact trace the virus within communities.

Trump took Birx's analysis as a criticism of the US pandemic response, accusing her of offering such a grim assessment to curry favor with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has condemned the coronavirus czar for not doing enough to confront the president's faulty claims on the pandemic.

During a virtual press conference, Dr. Fauci explained the reasoning behind's Birx's use of a "new phase," saying that the US is seeing a much more "insidious" spread of the virus, making it difficult to suppress and contain its spread throughout communities.

Dr. Anthony Fauci came to the defense of White House COVID-19 czar Dr. Deborah Birx after President Donald Trump slammed her for acknowledging that the coronavirus is getting worse in the US.

On Sunday, Birx said the US is entering a "new phase" of the coronavirus pandemic as some states see uncontrolled surges in cases by asymptomatic individuals.

Her comments on the pandemic came after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the coronavirus czar "enabled" the president and has not done enough to confront his misguided claims about the coronavirus.

Trump, however, took Birx's stark assessment of a "new phase" as a blow to the US response to the coronavirus, accusing Birx of acknowledging the worsening pandemic in order to appeal to Pelosi's criticisms.

"So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx, going after her because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics," Trump tweeted Monday. "In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!"

In a virtual press conference with Gov. Ned Lamont of Connecticut, Fauci elaborated on Birx's analysis of a "new phase" of the pandemic by explaining that she was referring to the prevalence of "inherent community spread" in the US.

"The reason why she's saying it's a new phase is because, throughout the country, when you have community spread, it's much more difficult to get your arms around that and contain it," Fauci said during the press conference.

"There are spreads where you know where it is and you can contain it," he added, citing examples like outbreaks in a nursing home, meat-packing facility, or prison, but inherent community spread is "insidious."

"There are people who are spreading it who have no symptoms at all, and we know that definitely occurs," the infectious disease expert continued. "It's difficult to identify it, and it's difficult to do identification, isolation, and contact tracing."

Birx and Fauci's viewpoints of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic stand at odds with the president's, as he continues to refer to confirmed infections in the US as "embers" that can be quickly stamped out.

The US has reported more than 4.7 million cases and over 155,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.

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Donald Trump calls his Covid coordinator 'pathetic' after she said virus was widespread across US

Pelosi and other Democrats have gone after Deborah Birx, accusing her of tailoring her messages for Trump.

Donald Trump speaks during an appearance at Double Eagle Energy in Midland, Texas.
Image: SIPA USA/PA Images

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP has lashed out at his coronavirus response coordinator Deborah Birx after she sounded a grim warning about the pandemic’s new surge.

Trump, angered by what he sees as overly pessimistic media coverage of his handling of the pandemic, said Birx had given into pressure from the Democrats’ Nancy Pelosi to sound negative.

“Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!” he tweeted.

Yesterday, Birx told CNN that the United States, which has already seen nearly 155,000 deaths from Covid-19, is entering “a new phase” of viral spread.

“It is extraordinarily widespread,” she said. “To everybody who lives in a rural area, you are not immune or protected from this virus.”

Trump said that Birx’s warning was issued only after she was attacked by the Democratic speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.

Pelosi and other Democrats have gone after Birx, a veteran public health expert, over what they say is her willingness to tailor her messages to win approval from Trump.

“I think the president is spreading disinformation about the virus and she is his appointee, so I don’t have confidence there, no,” Pelosi said on ABC television.

Yesterday, the White House sprang to Birx’s defence.

“It is deeply irresponsible of Speaker Pelosi to repeatedly try to undermine & create public distrust in Dr Birx, the top public health professional on the coronavirus task force,” Alyssa Farah, director of strategic communications, tweeted.
It’s also just wrong. Period. Hard stop.

Trump, however, changed tack with today’s tweet.

So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx, going after her because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics. In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 3, 2020Source: Donald J. Trump/Twitter


The other main public face of the US medical response to the coronavirus, Dr Anthony Fauci, has come in for frequent rough treatment at the hands of the White House and sometimes Trump himself.

Fauci’s typically hard-nosed assessments of the disease’s progress regularly counter more rosy versions promoted by the president.

Trump has called Fauci “alarmist,” suggested he is misleading the public, and last week said it was unfair that the doctor’s public approval ratings are so much higher than his own.

© – AFP 2020

Trump Turns His Back On Dr. Birx After She Incinerated Her Reputation For Him

THE INTELLECTUALIST



Dr. Deborah Birx said the coronavirus is now widespread across the US. President Trump called her comments "pathetic."

President Donald Trump lashed out publicly at Dr. Deborah Birx on Monday, suggesting that she hurt him by acknowledging that the coronavirus is now widespread across the United States, according to The Hill.

• “Trump targeted Birx over a weekend response to criticism from Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who questioned Birx’s credibility in responding to the pandemic,” the news outlet reported, calling Birx’s response to Pelosi’s criticism “pathetic.”
• The president tweeted: “So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx, going after her because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics. In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!”

• Trump’s tweet marked the first time he has criticized Birx in public, The Hill noted, though it is not the first time he has undercut one of his own public health officials during the pandemic.
• Pelosi had said of Birx, “I think the president is spending — spreading disinformation about the virus and she is his — she is his appointee. So I don't have confidence there, no.”
• And Birx responded on Sunday: “I have tremendous respect for the Speaker. And I have tremendous respect for her long dedication to the American people.”
• She added a warning: “What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread ... it’s more widespread and it’s both rural and urban. To everybody who lives in a rural area, you are not immune or protected from this virus. And that is why we keep saying, no matter where you live in America, you need to wear a mask and socially distance, do the personal hygiene pieces.”