A Virtual Church

The skewering of Anthony Fauci

9:52 p.m. today

We wonder how low the Trump Administration will go with the revenge campaign we are seeing against Dr. Anthony Fauci. Senator Rand Paul summoned Dr. Fauci with the nefarious intent of skewering him about his decisions during the Covid pandemic.

Paul seemed greatly delighted to have gotten Dr. Fauci’s personal journal, where the good doctor had written some of his reflections about how he had acted in the pandemic. Rand Paul was grilling him about his recommendation to close schools, churches and places of business during the height of the pandemic.

There had not been a pandemic in America since the 1917 flu epidemic ran its course through the American population, leaving thousands dead.

Epidemiologists, like Dr. Fauci, worked to prepare a people for widespread death, with very little current experience like this in their wheelhouse.

Development of the Covid vaccine was called for by Trump. He called it, “Operation Warp Speed.” He also suggested drinking Clorox and taking a drug used in treatments of horses. But I digress.

There were many on the right who advocated letting Covid play itself out through a herd mentality, a human survival of the fittest.

Development of vaccines is fulltime work for serious scientists and doctors. Viruses mutate easily and quickly. There is a base line of virus treatment, then come the mutations of yearly flu viruses. Developing the resistance to Covid virus was a monumental achievement.

Lives were saved. No more tent morgues in the parking lots of New York City. The losses hurt and still impact business and churches. Closing churches did immeasurable harm from which the church is just now beginning to recover. The same is true with schools. But across the spectrum of Americans of all ages, lives were saved.

We worshipped in the parking lot for months. Sidewalk cafes popped up all over Raleigh. Outdoor dining became a “thing.” We still dine outside if it isn’t 95 degrees.

There is an old saying, “It is better to be safe than sorry.” It is always better to err on the side of caution. The vaccine slowed the virus to a manageable level. Many of us still have N95 protection face masks. We keep hand sanitizer on hand in our cars and purses.

It is folly to think Covid is the final pandemic that will befall us. Who knows what evil lurks around the corner?

Senator Paul gave Fauci hell, but did not even mention the vaccine denier-in chief who is head of the Trump CDC, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. As Secretary of Health and Human Services Kennedy is single-handedly wrecking public health in America. The pain and suffering of those who contract a virus like measles need an explanation. We all need one.

Curiously, Rand Paul did not raise a whit of concern about the increasing number of measles cases around the country. Measles vaccine was developed in 1954 and licensed and distributed in 1963. Today measles rates are the highest they have been in 35 years! There were 2,300 measles cases reported in 2025; 2,400 cases year to date in 2026. Currently there is 67% of our population that is unvaccinated.

Eboli is on the rise in Africa. Polio survives in some countries. What will happen to Americans when and if those viruses come to our shores?

The incompetence that permeates the Trump administration runs deep and wide. We see the repercussions of his lunacy everywhere. We can but hope we make it through the next two years under this destructive administration.

Shame on those who have been complicit in letting Trump run rampant through our democracy and shred every stitch of the social contract among Americans. We know who you are. Collectively, we can do more together than we can as individuals.

Public servants, like Anthony Fauci, are part of the safety net of healthcare that has been afforded Americans since FDR. Let’s offer him some charity and say that he might have made some mistakes but was operating in unchartered waters and honestly tried to make the best decisions for us all. Surely our Congress has decency and integrity enough to be part of the healing, not the hurting in America.

Ye MAGAs need to find somebody else to pick on.

Lib Campbell is a retired Methodist pastor, retreat leader, columnist, and host of the blogsite Avirtualchurch.com. She can be contacted at libcam05@gmail.com. 

 

 

 

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