Critics didn’t miss the hypocrisy as US senator Marco Rubio attacked infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci and the science of Covid-19 on Sunday, a week after the senator got a vaccine to protect himself against the coronavirus.
Rubio, who has often downplayed the threat of Covid-19 and has blown off wearing a mask at large gatherings even as cases were spiking, hasn’t criticised disinformation about Covid-19 from President Donald Trump.
Yet he slammed Fauci’s advice, saying in a tweet that the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases “lied about masks in March” and “has been distorting the level of vaccination needed for herd immunity”.
Fauci initially downplayed the importance of the American public wearing face coverings, and said he was concerned at the start of the pandemic that a mask shortage would put health care workers at risk. But for several months, he has strongly and repeatedly advised that everyone wear a mask.
Health experts have said until recently that up to 70% of the population would need to get the vaccine to reach herd immunity. Fauci has increased that in the past week to between 70% and 85%, based on updated estimates.
Rubio became one of the first Americans to receive a vaccine against Covid-19, getting a shot ahead of many elderly Americans, first responders and health care workers who have a far greater risk of contracting the disease.
People on Twitter let the Florida senator have it.
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