Reflecting on Anthony Fauci: A Man Who Believed He Embodied Science

Admiration and Criticism

In my early years as a medical student, I held a deep admiration for Tony Fauci. I purchased and studied Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, a crucial textbook co-edited by Fauci. His new memoir, On Call, reminded me why I held him in such high regard. His empathy for his patients, especially those suffering from HIV, is evident.

However, Fauci's memoir fails to address critical aspects of his shortcomings as an administrator, a political advisor, and a significant figure in America's public health response to infectious diseases over the past four decades. His life story mirrors a Greek tragedy. Fauci's apparent intelligence and diligence raised high expectations from the country and the world, but his hubris led to his failure as a public servant.

Fauci's Approach to AIDS

Reading Fauci's memoir, it's clear that he was deeply moved by the plight of AIDS patients. From the moment he first learned about the disease from a perplexing and alarming case report, his commendable ambition has been to eradicate the disease with drugs and vaccines, cure every patient, and erase the syndrome from the face of the earth. His sincerity and correctness are evident when he writes that "history will judge us harshly if we don't end HIV."

However, Fauci's memoir paints an incomplete picture of his initial approach towards AIDS patients. In 1983, he suggested that AIDS might be spread by routine household contact, a statement that lacked evidence then and now. This statement, widely echoed in the media, incited panic among the American people, likely leading many to avoid AIDS patients due to unfounded fear of contracting the disease.

Fauci's Success and Failures

Fauci was incredibly successful in building public support for government spending on treating and preventing the spread of AIDS. His memoir highlights his adeptness at managing bureaucracy and influencing politicians and activists. However, his treatment of scientific critics was severe, crossing lines that federal science bureaucrats should not cross.

Despite billions of dollars spent, no one has yet produced an effective HIV vaccine or a definitive cure, and the virus remains a global health threat. By Fauci's own high standards, there is still a long way to go.

Fauci's Role in Biodefense and Gain-of-Function Research

In the early days of the war on terror, Fauci became the head of civilian biodefense, tasked with developing and stockpiling countermeasures to biowarfare agents. This appointment made Fauci one of the most well-paid and influential figures in the US government. He used his deep knowledge of federal bureaucracy to streamline federal contracting rules and create a network of companies and scientists who depended on him for their success.

Among the projects Fauci and the NIAID funded during these years was research to identify coronaviruses in the wild and bring them into laboratories to study their potential for causing a human pandemic. This work included laboratories worldwide. Fauci's organization funded an American outfit, EcoHealth Alliance, which collaborated with scientists at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

Fauci's Influence on Covid-19 Response

By any measure, the American Covid response was a catastrophic failure. Fauci served as a key advisor to both President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden, and was a central figure on Trump's Covid task force that determined federal policy. Yet in his memoir's chapters on Covid, he simultaneously takes credit for advising leaders while disclaiming any responsibility for policy failures.

The Great Barrington Declaration

Fauci's discussion of the Great Barrington Declaration is particularly vexing. The Declaration is a short policy document I wrote with Martin Kulldorff (then of Harvard University) and Sunetra Gupta (of the University of Oxford) in October 2020. It recommended focused protection of vulnerable older populations and lifting lockdowns. Fauci denigrates the Great Barrington Declaration, falsely claiming the document called for letting the virus "rip."

Final Thoughts

While a part of me still admires Fauci, the extent of the damage caused by his hubris is hard to ignore. Despite his career accomplishments, no one should give any man, much less Fauci, credit for being the embodiment of science itself.

Bottom Line

If Fauci's goal in writing this memoir is to guide how historians write about him towards the positive, I do not think he succeeded. He will be remembered as a consequential figure for his contributions to the American approach to the HIV and Covid pandemics. But he will also be remembered as a cautionary tale of what can happen when too much power is invested in a single person for far too long. What are your thoughts on this? Share this article with your friends and sign up for the Daily Briefing, which is every day at 6pm.