Despite frequently contradicting Donald Trump's false declarations during the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci has not yet been fired by the narcissistic manchild whose whims and self-interest continues to damage, on a daily basis, the nation's emergency response efforts. Mike Pence or one of his subordinates granted Fauci access to the Sunday shows today to continue his efforts to explain to the American people just what the current situation is and what to expect next, and Fauci did not mince words.
The United States is on track for between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths in the COVID-19 pandemic, says Dr. Fauci. And the total cases will be in the "millions."
Despite Fauci's dire numbers, those estimates are in fact on the low end of what other experts have warned. Left unchecked, with no social distancing or other measures and a death rate similar to those seen in other countries, it has been estimated that COVID-19 could infect up to 40%-70% of the population and kill between 1-3 million Americans in the next 18 months.
But the United States got a late start—a very late start—on testing the virus, tracking it, and on subsequent social distancing measures, and that means we are already on a pandemic "curve" worse than even that of Italy. 100,000 deaths now seem all but certain.
Fauci was therefore skeptical that social distancing guidelines could be lifted anytime soon, as Trump has repeatedly pressed for. "It's going to be a matter of weeks," he said, and if needed "we will push the date forward."
Even 100,000 deaths may be, at this point, a too-optimistic scenario. Republican-led states like Florida continue to resist stay-at-home orders despite clear evidence that they are on disease trajectories similar to current hotspots; emergency supplies continue, even with months of warning, to be rationed due to scarcity.