Tuesday, May 5, 2020

Global – 3,500,000/240,000; USA – 1,200,000/69,000 OMG! This is really getting nutsy. Sally Quinn evidently wrote a book some time ago about a character that is me: https://www.washingtonian.com/2020/05/05/sally-quinn-modeled-the-erotic-hero-of-her- 1991-bestseller-on-anthony-fauci/ The Maureen Dowd sends me an e-mail: “I can see it” Did a TF meeting today in the Sit Room (see above) displaying the NIH (esp. VRC) vaccine effort. I took Barney Graham, John Mascola (who presented) and Francis Collins. We successfully got VP to understand the NIH intramural and extramural. Got call from Paula Reid asking about a story in the New York Times that the WH is disbanding the Task Force. I told her that this was news to me. I also made peace with her about the “confrontation” at a press conference that we had a few weeks back (see above) Today’s USA Today: Another bit of craziness: Paula Read of CBS called my cell and said that the NY Times was reporting that WH was going to phase down the TF and was that true. I told her that I had not heard that and it was news to me. She apparently reports this on CBS and soon after, I get a call from Katie Miller saying that I am contradicting the VP since when reporters asked him (someone leaked it from the WH), he admitted that they were going in that direction. Katie says that I should not have said to Paula that I had not heard about this. I should have said I will get back to you. I pushed back strongly. This is bullshit. The reporter asks if I had heard about this and I said no. It would have been ridiculous to say anything else. Finally Katie admitted thatr she had not even heard about it before the media announced it. CRAZY TOWN!! The woman who held the press conference call today (Karen Draper) saying that she worked for me for 2 years and I sexually assaulted her flopped. There were 6 people on the call and the Buzzfeed reporter pointed out that he checked her out and there was no record of her ast NIH ever. Also, he pointed out that she pronounced my name Dr. Foouchi and so she could not have worked for me for 2 years. This is the second flopped accusation. (see above). Much press on Trump blocking emfrom testifying before the House while allowing me to testify before the Senate. Also, media frenzy regarding Trump planning to phase out the TF. He does say that Deb and I will remain as scientific advisors (whatever that means). My prediction is that Deb will stay in the WH and I will remain at NIH and only do minor peripheral stuff. …………………………………………………………………. Tonight I had the usual 8:30 PM weekly “medical community” meeting (this is the 4th meeting) chaired by David Barr. He gets on the teleconference the following: Balter (LA County); Allison Arwady (Chicago); Demitre Daskalakis (NYC); LaQuandra Nesbitt (DC); Jeff Duchin (Seattle). They have the same issue – mostly problem with testing, not enough, shortage of swabs, extraction material, media, long wait for results. I keep bringing this up to TF and TF (Giroir and Jared) do happy talk.