Trump retweets call to fire Dr. Fauci

Trump retweets call to fire Dr. Fauci

U.S. President Donald Trump retweeted a call to fire Dr. Anthony Fauci after the nation's top expert on infectious diseases said lives could have been saved if the country had shut down sooner during the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Yahaira Jacquez reports.

U.S. President Donald Trump retweeted a call to fire Dr. Anthony Fauci after the nation’s top infectious disease expert said lives could have been saved if the country had shut down sooner.

A move that fueled speculation Trump was running out of patience with Dr. Fauci.

The apparent condemnation came after Fauci appeared on CNN's "State of The Union" show on Sunday.

He defended the U.S. coronavirus response but conceded that the government “could have saved more lives” if it had moved sooner to implement social distancing, but added 'there was a lot of pushback about shutting things down.'" Hours later, President Trump retweeted a message from a former Republican congressional candidate who cited Fauci's comments from his CNN appearance and said "Time to #FireFauci." Fauci has assumed national prominence - and a degree of affection - as a leader in the fight against the coronavirus.

At times, he has contradicted or corrected Trump on scientific matters, including whether the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine is effective against the virus.

At a White House briefing last week, the president refused to let Fauci answer a question about the drug, which the president had called a potential “game changer” (SOUNDBITE) (ENGLISH) U.S. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SAYING: “Do you know how many times he’s answered that question?

Maybe 15.” The president's apparent frustration with Fauci comes at a critical time as debate rages over when the White House should move to re-open the economy.

Fauci has held his position as the nation's top infectious disease specialist since 1984 and has served under 6 presidents.

Some polls during this crisis have shown Americans trust him more than Trump.

The White House on Monday did not comment on Trump’s retweet.