Former President Donald Trump on Thursday blasted infectious disease expert and White House medical adviser Anthony Fauci for early misinformation on the coronavirus pandemic — and demanded China pay the United States $10 trillion for ''the death and destruction they have caused.''
In statements issued on his Save America website, Trump laid into Fauci after the release by news outlets of thousands of emails Fauci sent and received since early last year.
According to the emails, Fauci, as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was aware in January of last year that some features of the coronavirus "(potentially) look engineered" and suggested the Wuhan lab leak theory may have had some legitimacy.
''After seeing the emails, our Country is fortunate I didn't do what Dr. Fauci wanted me to do,'' Trump stated.
''For instance, I closed our Borders to China very early despite his not wanting them closed. The Democrats and the Fake News Media even called me a 'xenophobe.' In the end, we saw this was a life-saving decision, and likewise with closing our borders to Europe, specifically to certain heavily infected countries.
''I was later given credit, even by 'Tony,' for saving hundreds of thousands of lives. Dr. Fauci also didn't put an emphasis on speed of vaccine production because he thought it would take 3, 4, or maybe even 5 years to create. I got it done in less than 9 months with Operation Warp Speed. In retrospect, the vaccine is saving the world.
''Then, I placed the greatest bet in history. We ordered billions of dollars' worth of vaccines before we knew it even worked. Had that not been done, our wonderful vaccines would not have been administered until October of this year. No one would've had the shot that has now saved the world and millions of lives!''
Trump also derided Fauci for his initial advice that masks would be unhelpful against the virus, only to change positions after citing new data showing they would be helpful.
''Dr. Fauci was totally against masks when even I thought they would at least be helpful. He then changed his mind completely and became a radical masker!'' Trump stated.
He also said questions ''that must answered'' by Fauci include funding of Wuhan, where a lab accident may have triggered the pandemic in China.
Trump lamented that it is only now that ''everyone, even the so-called 'enemy,' are beginning to say that President Trump was right about the China Virus coming from the Wuhan Lab,'' he wrote.
''The correspondence between Dr. Fauci and China speaks too loudly for anyone to ignore. China should pay Ten Trillion Dollars to America, and the World, for the death and destruction they have caused!''
Fran Beyer ✉
Fran Beyer is a writer with Newsmax and covers national politics.
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