DeSantis faces deep criticism for 'Orwellian' investigation on vaccines

15 December 2022

Following Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' (R) announcement to launch an investigation into the potential safety risks of the COVID-19 vaccine, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) director Dr. Anthony Fauci offered a critical reaction to the governor's effort.

On Wednesday, December 14, Fauci appeared on CNN where he described the potential move as pointless. Fauci, who now serves as the chief medical advisor to President Joe Biden, argused that DeSantis' effort would only undermine Americans' confidence in the effectiveness of the vaccine.

“We have a vaccine that, unequivocally, is highly effective and safe and has saved literally millions of lives,” Fauci said Wednesday on CNN. “What’s the problem with vaccines?”

In a new analysis, Senior White House Correspondent Alexander Nazaryan expounded on Fauci's arguments explaining one of the main reasons for the apprehension around vaccinations.

"The problem is vaccines have become part of America’s polarized politics," Nazaryan wrote. "Since the advent of COVID-19 vaccines late in the Trump administration, skepticism of the established medical science has become a kind of creed for many conservatives, as well as for some on the far left."

He added, "Political disagreements about lockdowns, mask mandates, and vaccine requirements have hardened into antipathy toward the vaccines themselves."

Nazaryan went on to discuss the adverse impacts of politicizing the health sector and efforts to mitigate the virus. "Seizing on rare adverse side effects and diminishing effectiveness — the result of new variants and low booster uptake — vaccine critics have dismissed inoculation as ineffective and potentially dangerous," he wrote.

Fauci's remarks and Nazaryan's analysis come after DeSantis' repeated attacks leveled at the top-ranking infectious disease expert. On multiple occasions, DeSantis has made unfounded claims about COVID mitigation efforts while echoing debunked statistics about the virus.

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