White House claims it didn't approve Peter Navarro op-ed trashing Fauci
The views expressed by Peter Navarro do not necessarily reflect the views of the White House, the White House is now insisting.
Navarro, President Trump's trade adviser, on Tuesday wrote a brutal op-ed in USA Today trashing Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, accusing him of being "wrong about everything I have interacted with him on." This was the latest attack on Fauci by White House officials in recent days, but on Wednesday, the White House began telling reporters they didn't sign off on the op-ed.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Soon enough, White House Director of Strategic Communications Alyssa Farah tweeted a similar statement, saying Navarro's piece "didn't go through normal White House clearance processes" and is just his personal opinion. Farah added that Trump "values the expertise of the medical professionals advising his administration," though she didn't call for an apology.
Still, Navarro's op-ed wasn't a one-off. Recently, the White House sent reporters what was effectively opposition research against Fauci listing instances in which he's been wrong, and Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications Dan Scavino posted a cartoon on social media mocking Fauci. Trump economic adviser Stephen Moore also told The Daily Beast about his plans to "go after Fauci."
Fauci in a recent interview revealed he hasn't briefed Trump on COVID-19 in two months and speculated he's being kept off television partially because of his reputation for "speaking the truth at all times and not sugar-coating things."
-
Political cartoons for January 24Cartoons Saturday's political cartoons include 3D chess, political distractions, and more
-
Ryanair/SpaceX: could Musk really buy the airline?Talking Point Irish budget carrier has become embroiled in unlikely feud with the world’s wealthiest man
-
Claudette Colvin: teenage activist who paved the way for Rosa ParksIn The Spotlight Inspired by the example of 19th century abolitionists, 15-year-old Colvin refused to give up her seat on an Alabama bus
-
‘One Battle After Another’ wins Critics Choice honorsSpeed Read Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, won best picture at the 31st Critics Choice Awards
-
Son arrested over killing of Rob and Michele ReinerSpeed Read Nick, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner, has been booked for the murder of his parents
-
Rob Reiner, wife dead in ‘apparent homicide’speed read The Reiners, found in their Los Angeles home, ‘had injuries consistent with being stabbed’
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
