Dr. Anthony Fauci tried to give an interviewer a nuanced assessment this week of the current pandemic situation, which included, amid a raft of qualifiers, his judgment that America is "out of the pandemic phase." Predictably, media outlets screamed that Fauci had declared the pandemic "over" (as if there was always an off switch somewhere), forcing him to come back out and clarify what he meant: that high inoculation rates and continued precautions could make the coronavirus a manageable threat going forward.

The tension between the complexities of science and the black-or-white imperatives of media and politics these days are part of the reason Fauci, the federal government's top infectious disease expert, is always in the crosshairs of conservatives. They have, bizarrely, designated this hero of the pandemic as its chief villain. History will vindicate Fauci as a responsible public servant and condemn his condemners. Meanwhile, Americans should continue listening to the expert advice of Fauci and his colleagues — fact-based course corrections and all — and shut out the know-nothing noise from the rabid Right.

In four decades of service to presidents, Fauci's competence was never questioned until the most incompetent president in modern history made him a foil. Former President Donald Trump, irritated that Fauci wouldn't validate his "it will just go away" approach to the pandemic, routinely sidelined him, denigrated Fauci's expertise and hinted during rallies that he would soon fire him (though Trump had no clear authority to do so).

In Trumpland, the message came across loud and clear: Fauci, as the embodiment of a fact-based approach to fighting the coronavirus, was the enemy. During and after Trump's tenure, conservatives pounced every time Fauci seemed to change course based on the changing course of the virus — reflecting the scientific reality of dealing with a new virus. Congressional demagogues like Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., discovered that Fauci-bashing was a great fundraising technique.

It has metastasized to the point that Oklahoma's state Republican chairman recently got applause from a room full of Republicans for declaring that "we should try Anthony Fauci" — no mention of why — "and put him in front of a firing squad."

Fauci's clarification this week was merely a reminder that he's a scientist, not a media expert. After his initial comments to PBS were interpreted to mean the pandemic is over, he quickly explained that "the level of infections is low enough that people are starting to learn to live with the virus (while) still protecting themselves by vaccination, by the availability of antivirals, by testing."

A scientist who is quick to fix a misunderstanding is a good thing, not a "gotcha." And if, as Fauci and other responsible experts are cautiously suggesting, America might finally be on a path out of this pandemic, now isn't the time to empower the crowd that has been extending and worsening the crisis since it started.

REPRINTED FROM THE ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

Photo credit: leo2014 at Pixabay