Fauci Warns Senate Of Looming ‘Suffering And Death’

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As of early Tuesday, almost 82,000 Americans and counting have died from the Coronavirus, and Dr. Anthony Fauci is slated to warn a Senate committee on Tuesday that “needless suffering and death” could ensue in even greater measure if the U.S. rushes to lift social distancing guidelines that had been meant to stem the virus’s spread. The White House itself has outlined guidelines for the economic reopening process that include a documented two-week decline in cases, but many states around the country have been setting reopening plans in motion without hitting that benchmark. Now, new waves of infections and death could be on the horizon.

Referring to the Senate Health Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Fauci told The New York Times:

‘The major message that I wish to convey to the Senate HLP committee tomorrow is the danger of trying to open the country prematurely. If we skip over the checkpoints in the guidelines to: ‘Open America Again,’ then we risk the danger of multiple outbreaks throughout the country. This will not only result in needless suffering and death, but would actually set us back on our quest to return to normal.’

Former CDC Director Dr. Thomas R. Frieden agrees. He commented recently:

‘We’re not reopening based on science. We’re reopening based on politics, ideology and public pressure. And I think it’s going to end badly.’

Fauci had been appearing publicly fairly regularly until President Donald Trump decided to stop holding daily Coronavirus-related press conferences. He made that abrupt cancellation after the fallout over his ignorant suggestion to explore using household disinfectants as a potential treatment for the Coronavirus. Ingesting those disinfectants would be toxic and perhaps deadly, just to be clear.

Now, Fauci will be appearing via videoconference at the Senate committee hearing slated for this Tuesday alongside fellow public health officials including Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield, and Assistant Secretary for Health Brett Giroir. Fauci, Hahn, and Redfield have all placed themselves under some form of self-quarantine due to possible exposure to the virus and the possibility of unwittingly transmitting it to other people. At least two White House staffers have recently tested positive for the disease, including the vice president’s press secretary and a valet for the president. The president and vice president have subsequently been getting tested for Coronavirus daily, and many officials at the White House have started wearing masks.

Trump has been among those clamoring for a swift reopening of the economy, even as Coronavirus cases and deaths continue to mount. He has repeatedly expressed support for angry protesters who’ve turned out around the country against stay-at-home demands, including heavily armed individuals who recently stormed the state capitol building in Michigan. These people, including Trump, are trying to wish basic public health concerns out of existence and seem willfully ignorant of the fact that stay-at-home orders are not some secret global conspiracy against patriots or whatever. They’re basic steps to keep people from dying in even larger numbers due a rapidly spreading, deadly respiratory disease.