Why Does Dr. Fauci Want This Fox News Host Fired Immediately?
Ever since Dr. Anthony Fauci gained prominence as a leading figure in the fight against COVID-19 during the Trump administration, the current chief medical advisor to President Joe Biden has also become a figure of derision amongst MAGA conservatives. For Fauci, who frequently butt heads with Donald Trump over refusing to downplay the threat of the pandemic, his refusal to acquiesce to the ex-president's demands sparked a backlash from Trump's followers — one lead by Trump himself.
Now, nearly two years since the coronavirus pandemic hit U.S. shores, it seems Trump's supporters are still heavily under his sway, as evidenced by troubling comments made by a popular Fox News pundit which seemingly encouraged MAGA diehards to confront Fauci face-to-face, and possibly with violence.
These comments, delivered by Fox News host Jesse Watters at a GOP convention on December 20, were so troubling to Fauci that the current director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases publicly called for Watters' firing, per the Daily Beast. So what exactly did Watters say about Fauci? And does it look like Fox News will take the incident seriously?
Jesse Watters encouraged a 'kill shot' confrontation
During a December 21 appearance on CNN, Dr. Anthony Fauci reacted strongly to comments Jesse Watters made at Turning Point USA, a conservative conference, less than a day prior. Watters' remarks occurred during an address at the convention related to allegations that Fauci approved research funding at a laboratory in China, leading to the first COVID-19 outbreak.
Though the evidence for this is dubious, as per The Washington Post, Watters went full-throttle. Placing blame on Fauci, Watters seemingly encouraging conference attendees to "ambush" the medical adviser — and implying they should do so with deadly force, per the Daily Beast. "The kill shot, with an ambush — deadly, 'cause he doesn't see it coming," said Watters. "This is when you say, 'Dr. Fauci, you funded risky research at a sloppy Chinese lab, the same lab that sprung this pandemic on the world. You know why people don't trust you, don't you?'"
In response, Fauci expressed disbelief. "The only thing that I have ever done throughout these two years is to encourage people to practice good public health practices: to get vaccinated, to be careful in public settings, to wear a mask," Fauci said on CNN, before calling Watters' words "horrible." While casting doubt that Watter's network would do anything in response, Fauci opined, "The guy should be fired on the spot." In response, Fox News issued their own statement, calling Watters' remarks mere "metaphor" and claiming they were "twisted completely out of context," per Politico.