Dr. Anthony Fauci Recalls Trump Yelling At Him Then Telling Him That He ‘Loved Him’ In New Memoir

In his highly anticipated memoir, On Call: A Doctor’s Journey in Public Service, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the renowned director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), offers a behind-the-scenes look at his experiences navigating the Covid-19 pandemic under the tumultuous administration of the former President Donald Trump.

Fauci, who has served under seven successive U.S. presidents, recounts a series of jarring interactions with the former president, in which the then-commander-in-chief, in his typical volatile temperament, hurled expletive-laden outbursts and made grandiose claims about his impending re-election victory.

According to Fauci’s account, Trump would alternate between expressing affection for the veteran medical expert and berating him for his cautious approach to public health measures, including social distancing, lockdowns and vaccine mandates. The president’s fury was particularly ignited when Fauci cautioned that immunity to Covid-19 might only last for a limited duration, potentially necessitating booster shots – a statement that Trump deemed detrimental to the country’s economic recovery.

“It was quite a phone call,” Fauci writes. “The president was irate, saying that I could not keep doing this to him. He said he loved me, but the country was in trouble, and I was making it worse.”

“I have a pretty thick skin,” Fauci wrote, “but getting yelled at by the president of the United States, no matter how much he tells you that he loves you, is not fun.”

Two days before Election Day, Trump was upset Fauci told The Washington Post that the U.S. was still “in for a whole lot of hurt,” and told Fauci, “Everybody wants me to fire you… But I am not going to fire you, you have too illustrious a career, but you have to be positive. The country cannot stay locked down. You have to give them hope. I like you, but so many people—not only in the White House but throughout the country—hate you because of what you are doing.” At the time, the COVID-19 case count was nine million, with 230,000 dead.

Fauci’s memoir also sheds light on his interactions with President Joe Biden, whom he describes as a “no-nonsense person guided by integrity and empathy” who sought to restore the White House’s pre-Trump focus on combating the pandemic.

During recent congressional testimony, Fauci said he “had nothing to hide” when grilled by Republicans about the pandemic response.