Conspiracy theorists are undermining coronavirus expert Dr. Fauci

Dr. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has been instrumental in the Trump administration’s response to the coronavirus. Working alongside Dr. Deborah Birx, who serves as the response coordinator for the Coronavirus Task Force, and Dr. Stephen Hahn of the Food and Drug Administration, Dr. Fauci has become a staple of President Trump’s daily press briefings, bringing information about the deadly pandemic to the public and clarifying the government’s plans to mitigate its spread.

The doctor was recently the subject of a meme after he stifled a laugh in response to the President’s joke about the “Deep State”—an action that was misinterpreted by both conspiracy theorists and Trump’s detractors as a sign of his disapproval of the President’s conduct.

Dr. Fauci’s detractors refer to him as a holdover from the Obama administration, but the fact is that the doctor was appointed by President Ronald Reagan and has advised every administration since then.

A leading expert on infectious diseases, Dr. Fauci has been quick to caution against over-optimism of President Trump’s recommendation that patients with coronavirus be treated with an anti-malaria drug called hydroxychloroquine as a sort of “cure-all.” Despite showing some measure of efficacy, the drug has not been sufficiently tested for widespread use in hospitals throughout the United States. As The Post Millennial reported, some Canadian hospitals have already rolled it out as a treatment.

Conspiracy theorists believe that Dr. Fauci’s cautious recommendations are signs that he’s an agent of the Deep State who wants to spread “fear porn” and undermine President Trump’s message of hope. They cite two old emails Dr. Fauci wrote to Hillary Clinton in 2013 as proof of his agenda. Clinton served as the Secretary of State under the Obama administration.

Travis View, the host of the QAnon Anonymous Podcast, who debunks conspiracy theories put forth by those on the fringe of politics, highlighted tweets that went viral on social media.

Conspiracy theorists claim that any time Dr. Fauci opens his mouth to detail the reality of the pandemic, the stock market goes down. Some are also calling for his arrest.

One of the leading purveyors of the conspiracy is fringe personality Shiva Ayyadurai, who tweeted: “Time to expose “Deep State” Emperor Fauci & his “illustrious” career of #FakeScience imposing “one-size-fits-all” Medieval Mandated Medicine to profit his BIG PHARMA minions, the expense of crashing our economy. More to come....”

Former congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, a former Green Party member and current Libertarian Party member, referred to Dr. Fauci as a Deep State operative.

“REPEAT AFTER ME: Fauci is the swamp; Dr. Fauci is the swamp,” she wrote.

Loudest among them is right-wing broadcaster Bill Mitchell, who has been posting endless hate against Dr. Fauci, referring to him as a “Democrat plant” and “crackpot.”

In one instance, Mitchell tweeted about him 36 times in 30 minutes. Mitchell’s main contention is that the doctor is spreading what he calls “fear porn” by recommending the closing of schools and businesses to nix the spread of the coronavirus. Mitchell is also one of the leading proponents of the belief that the coronavirus is less virulent than the flu.

Despite downplaying the severity of the virus, Mitchell has taken the opportunity to shill his personal GoFundMe—making bank of off the naivete of his listeners. In a single day, the Mitchell managed to amass over $10,000 on GoFundMe.

For all the effort mainstream conservatives put into trashing the liberal media, which has tried to divide President Trump from Dr. Fauci by concocting a rift between the two of them, conservatives need to do a better job stopping their audience from sipping Bill Mitchell's stupid juice.