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Fauci Prepping to Talk Covid Strategy With Newest Trump Adviser

Fauci Prepping to Talk Covid Strategy With Newest Trump Adviser

Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease specialist, said he’s preparing for extended talks with Scott Atlas, President Donald Trump’s newest pandemic adviser who’s been pushing for schools to reopen.

Atlas, a Stanford University neuroradiologist who’s now a fellow at the school’s conservative Hoover Institution, was named by Trump last week. He’s been a critic of lockdowns and has said that children risk little from exposure to the virus.

Fauci Prepping to Talk Covid Strategy With Newest Trump Adviser

Fauci, a public health expert who has led the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984, said he’s already had brief discussions with Atlas. He hopes to “get a feel of where we are with regard to these issues, and do we differ and if so, how much,” he said Tuesday in a Twitter interview with Bloomberg QuickTake.

The two men are set to talk today.

Reopening schools has become a key issue in Trump’s effort to get the limping U.S. economy back on track. Millions of Americans are either employed by schools, or depend on them to educate and look after children during the workday.

Returning children to school is important and should be the “default” position, Fauci said in the interview. Schools are key for socialization, mental development, the economy and, for many, nutrition programs.

Fauci Prepping to Talk Covid Strategy With Newest Trump Adviser

Still, he said, the underlying issue is whether the goal can be accomplished in a way that’s safe for children, teachers, other employees and parents. No one decision is going to work for the country as a whole, he said.

Red-Hot Zone

“When you’re in a red-hot zone,” where infection rates are high, he said, “you really better be careful before you throw children back.”

Fauci and his views on public health measures have become a lightning rod for controversy in recent months. He said that while he’s been surprised by the support he’s received from some sectors, he didn’t “expect to be so hated” by others as he works to help the country battle the pandemic.

Meeting with Atlas will provide an opportunity for the two to exchange views directly, said Fauci, who said he would keep an open mind on the issues.

“I’ve always been of the bent to go right to the source and have an open, honest conversation,” he said. “Hopefully we can come to some sort of agreement, if you want to call it that.”

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