Fauci: From Icon to Villain

“Our government actively suppressed the truth if it hurt its effort to push the vaccine into every American's arm, regardless of age or risk factor. This concerted propaganda campaign is unparalleled in its scope and audacity. In the same world, those government bureaucrats responsible would be criminally charged.” – Deception

Just months into the Pandemic of 2020, Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) from 1984 to 2022, quickly became a cult leader to the progressive “Trust the Science” activists.  As the official coordinator of the federal response to the COVID-19 pandemic, America’s Doctor helped shape the public narrative that led to increased government spending and kept COVID-19 an ongoing threat.  His ensuing deification would include prayer candles, bobbleheads, action figures, pillows, trading cards, posters, and autographed photos.

NIAID, a division of the NIH, is focused specifically on research related to infectious, immunologic, and allergic diseases, as well as biodefense research.  Gain of function, which quickly became the culprit of the lab leak theory, is the genetic alteration of organisms to make them more transmissible.  In 2014, the United States paused gain-of-function for a risk analysis, before lifting funding in 2017.  By 2019, the Wuhan lab would be researching the use of bat coronavirus with the intent to infect humans. 

In Rand Paul’s 2023 book, “Deception”, Paul provides a thorough debrief of Anthony Fauci’s lies from the early days of COVID in 2020, as he continued his denial of gain-of-function research in China, which most certainly played a role in the devastating outcome of the COVID outbreak and subsequent deaths worldwide.  Through transcripts of hearings, Paul demonstrates how Fauci not only lied to Congress but also covered up the federal government's primary role in the debacle. 

Fauci’s first area of fabrication was masks and distancing.  Noting initially how masks wouldn’t work, he eventually shifted to demanding not just one mask, but two.  Studies would prove his initial claims were correct.  Masking doesn’t work.  Under the guise of the ever-evolving science, Fauci would settle on the sentiment that masks don’t work for the public at large but do work individually.  As far as social distancing, by 2024, Fauci would finally admit, the six-foot distancing provision was completely arbitrary and not backed by any science. 

In a 2004 video, Fauci can be seen praising the virtues of natural immunity, yet by 2020, immunity would be off the table during the COVID era.  This convenient position would allow for further lockdowns, ongoing closures of schools and businesses, and vaccines as the only solution to stop the pandemic.  As usual, Fauci would note the evolving science. 

In November 2019, a researcher at the WUHAN lab was the first person to contract COVID.  By 2021, the lab as a starting point would begin to be acknowledged.  But Fauci would not be on board.  In numerous hearings, Fauci defended the wet market theory that COVID came from nature.  Fauci also held fast that research at the Wuhan lab did not meet the gain-of-function definition. 

Despite his flip-flops, by 2024, Fauci would continue to defend his assertions that lockdowns, stay-at-home orders, church and school closures, mask wearing, and even vaccine mandates were all necessary.  But his revered reputation would not last for long.  FOIA requests and court orders would end Fauci’s prevarications, when emails would tell another story.  In addition to advising the Director of NIH to delete emails after they are read, and evidence of burner phones for bureaucrats' use, email threads would prove gain-of-function fears in early communications.  Worse, evidence of millions of dollars in royalties to Fauci and his coworkers would further disgrace his reputation. 

Openthebooks.com, a private database of government spending, would reveal that between 2010 and 2020, 350 million in royalties were paid by third-party agencies (mostly pharmaceutical companies) to NIH employees deemed co-inventers.  Between 2021 and 2023, NIH would receive 740 million in royalty payments, with a portion payable to scientists.  Unfortunately, under current law, federal employees are not required to disclose either their source of money or the amount of money received from royalties during the course of their employment.  This lack of transparency would allow these quid pro quos to continue, exacerbating claims of conflicts of interest between government agencies and pharmaceutical companies. 

Fauci was preemptively pardoned by Biden’s autopen in early 2025, in anticipation of future charges of wrongdoing, especially perjury to Congress.  Then, by backdating the pardon to 2014, Biden sought to shield Fauci from gain-of-function accountability as Fauci fought responsibility for funding the risky research that leaked from the Wuhan lab.  Since Fauci can no longer plead the Fifth due to his pardon, new questioning under oath would subject further lies to prosecution. 

Unfortunately, the Trump administration seems immune to holding anyone accountable for COVID crimes.  In all likelihood, Fauci will continue to collect a handsome pension along with ongoing royalties in an affluent neighborhood in Washington, DC.  The swamp always wins.