WATCH: Trump hints at firing Dr. Fauci after election, crowd goes wild

“Don’t tell anybody, but let me wait until a little bit after the election," Trump jested. "I appreciate the advice.”

The president called Fauci "a nice man though" who has "been wrong on a lot." He mimicked the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director: “Do not under any circumstances wear a mask, he said. Do not close up to China, he said, then he said later on that Trump — President Trump saved tens of thousands of lives because I closed early.”

CNN reported earlier this summer—as tension surmounted between the national leaders—that Trump cannot directly fire Fauci from his post and remove him from government as a career civil servant under federal law.

However, the president can pressure political appointee Health and Human Services director Alex Azar to dismiss Fauci from the position. Fauci would be permitted to appeal this internal process, a time-consuming endeavor that would likely take months to complete.

Coronavirus cases are slated to surge over the winter in the country, Fauci predicted in an interview published Saturday by The Washington Post.

"We're in for a whole lot of hurt. It's not a good situation," Fauci stated on record. "All the stars are aligned in the wrong place as you go into the fall and winter season, with people congregating at home indoors. You could not possibly be positioned more poorly."

According to a report by NBC News, the White House did not respond to press inquiries related to the president’s comments, but deputy press secretary Judd Deere attacked Fauci’s remarks in a lengthy statement, calling his commentary "unacceptable and breaking with all norms" for the medical professional to "choose three days before an election to play politics."

"As a member of the Task Force, Dr. Fauci has a duty to express concerns or push for a change in strategy, but he's not done that, instead choosing to criticize the president in the media and make his political leanings known by praising the president's opponent — exactly what the American people have come to expect from The Swamp," Deere continued, further alleging that Fauci "has no confidence in the American people to make the best choice for themselves armed with CDC best practices."