White House BLOCKS Tony Fauci From Testifying Before House Committee
The White House has blocked Dr. Anthony Fauci from testifying before an oversight hearing by the House Appropriations Committee, calling it 'counter-productive.'
Word of the order broke Friday afternoon, on a week when Fauci appeared at one White House coronavirus task force briefing but has been absent at others.
'The Appropriations Committee sought Dr. Anthony Fauci as a witness at next week's Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee hearing on COVID-19 response. We have been informed by an administration official that the White House has blocked Dr. Fauci from testifying,' House Appropriations panel spokesman Evan Hollander said in a statement.
BLOCKED: The White House is not allowing Dr. Anthony Fauci to testify before Congress next week
He didn't identify the official who blocked Fauci from appearing at the Wednesday hearing.
Although the House is out of session next week on the recommendation of the Capitol physician, its committees are seeking to resume oversight, including remotely.
White House spokesman Judd Deere confirmed in a statement that the White House opposed his appearance before the powerful subpanel panel, which provides spending for health and labor programs.
'While the Trump Administration continues its whole-of-government response to COVID-19, including safely opening up America again and expediting vaccine development, it is counter-productive to have the very individuals involved in those efforts appearing at Congressional hearings,' said Deere.
BUSY SCHEDULE: Dr. Anthony Fauci (L), director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases speaks next to Response coordinator for White House Coronavirus Task Force Deborah Birx, during a meeting with US President Donald Trump and Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards D-LA in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC on April 29, 2020
Reporters have sometimes quizzed Fauci on controversial statements by President Trump about the virus
In this image from video, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., speaks on the floor of the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Thursday, April 23, 2020. She chairs the panel that was denied Fauci's appearance
RELATED ARTICLES
Previous
1
Next
'I will NEVER lie to you.' New White House press secretary... Donald Trump tells Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer to... Mike Pence mask fiasco deepens as reporter reveals every... Donald Trump says he has seen evidence that the coronavirus...
Share this article
Share
5.4k shares
Fauci has sometimes attended White House briefings that have gone on for up to two hours, even speaking to the nation about the virus through early morning television interviews. He has also appeared on podcasts and other platforms to communicate with people about the disease.
The clash comes as Trump called for a 'pause' on coronavirus relief, even as Speaker Nancy Pelosi has called for a trillion dollar effort to aid states and cities.
'I think we want to take a little bit of a pause. But if we do that, we'll have to get something for it,' Trump said Thursday.
Fauci has sometimes contradicted the claims made by President Trump
RELATED ARTICLES
Previous
1
Next
'I will NEVER lie to you.' New White House press secretary... Donald Trump tells Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer to... Mike Pence mask fiasco deepens as reporter reveals every... Donald Trump says he has seen evidence that the coronavirus...
Share this article
Share
5.4k shares
'We are committed to working with Congress to offer testimony at the appropriate time,' he said.
Fauci has warned about the risks of lifting social distancing guidelines. At press briefings, reporters frequently try to pose questions that get him to fact-check claims by President Trump - such a statement last week saying people should look at injection of disinfectants as a possible coronavirus cure.
While the Trump Administration continues its whole-of-government response to COVID-19, including safely opening up America again and expediting vaccine development, it is counter-productive to have the very individuals involved in those efforts appearing at Congressional hearings - White House spokesman Judd Deere
Trump appeared with Dr. Debbie Birx, who chairs the coronavirus task force on Friday, calling her a leading expert on AIDS.
Fauci, who heads the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, this week relayed new information about the drug remdesivir. He pointed to 'clear-cut, significant, tour shangrila positive effect in diminishing the time to recovery' of hospitalized coronavirus patients.
Lawmakers are certain to try to grill him under oath about what he believes about the origins of the virus - Trump said Thursday it may have come from a lab in China despite what the Director of National Intelligence announced - as well as the administration's response.
More than 1 million Americans are infected with more than 60,000 deaths due to the coronavirus.
Appropriations Chair Rep. Nita Lowey of New York and subcommittee chair Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut issued a statement that said the nation deserved a 'clear-eyed view' of the way forward but stopped short of bashing the White House for the decision.
'Congress and the American public deserve a clear-eyed view of the path forward for responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the short-term, that entails what our federal government is doing on surveillance, testing, contact tracing, quarantining, social distancing, and the production and distribution of personal protective equipment,' they said.
'Over the medium-term, we need to understand the viability of therapeutics and vaccines in development, their dissemination, and how the influenza season could affect the ongoing pandemic in the Fall. And over the long-term, kynghidongduong.vn we need ensure lasting investments in our public health infrastructure are made instead of reacting to public health crises when they arise. The people of this country deserve a federal government that is up-to-date, modernized, and prepared to protect lives,' they said.
They will instead hear from Dr. Tom Frieden, former Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the Obama administration.