Elon Musk lashes out at US Covid chief Anthony Fauci

The billionaire Twitter owner’s post went viral, receiving over 800,000 likes within 11 hours but also sparking swift criticism.

Elon Musk’s attack on Anthony Fauci garnered support from the right. Pictures: AFP

Elon Musk has targeted America’s outgoing top infectious disease official and key adviser of the US response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Anthony Fauci, in a viral tweet that sparked backlash.

“My pronouns are Prosecute/Fauci,” the billionaire Twitter CEO said on Sunday (Monday AEDT), alluding to the right-wing campaign to charge Dr Fauci with crimes over his involvement in US Covid policies.

My pronouns are Prosecute/Fauci

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 11, 2022

Mr Musk also posted a meme showing Dr Fauci telling US President Joe Biden, “Just one more lockdown, my king ...” – in apparent criticism of the Covid mitigation measure the 51-year-old has repeatedly slammed but has not been deployed in the US for more than a year.

Early in the pandemic, Mr Musk tweeted that concern over the virus was “dumb”; since taking over Twitter he has removed its policy targeting Covid misinformation. His tweet quickly went viral, receiving more than 800,000 likes within 11 hours but also sparking swift criticism.

Vaccine scientist Peter Hotez called on Mr Musk to delete the tweet, saying, “200,000 Americans needlessly lost their lives from Covid due to this kind of antiscience rhetoric and disinformation”.

Democrat senator Amy Klobuchar praised how Dr Fauci “calmly guided our country through crisis” and addressed Mr Musk: “Could you just leave a good man alone in your ­seemingly endless quest for ­attention?”

Mr Musk received praise from right-wing corners. Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who had been removed from Twitter over Covid misinformation but whose account was reinstated under Mr Musk, tweeted: “I affirm your pronouns Elon.”

Republicans have pledged to grill Dr Fauci when they take control of the House of Representatives in January, after locking horns repeatedly with the top immunologist over Covid vaccines, mask mandates and other pandemic-related issues.

Dr Fauci, 81, is due to step down this month from his roles as Mr Biden’s chief medical adviser, as well as director of the National Institute for Allergies and Infectious Diseases, which he has headed since 1984.

In what was likely his final White House appearance in November, Dr Fauci slammed the proliferation of bad health advice online and said the most difficult thing he had to deal with while helming America’s fight against Covid was the country’s polarisation along political lines.

Meanwhile, one of China’s top health experts has warned of a surge in coronavirus cases, in the wake of the government’s decision to abandon its hardline strategy. Shops and restaurants in Beijing are deserted as the country awaits a spike in infections following the decision to reduce the scope of mandatory testing, allow some positive cases to quarantine at home and end large-scale lockdowns.

Top epidemiologist Zhong Nanshan told state media in an interview published on Sunday that the Omicron strain of the virus prevalent in China was highly transmissible and could lead to a surge in cases.

“The Omicron mutation ... is very contagious ... one person can transmit to 22 people,” said Dr Zhong, a leading adviser to the government throughout the pandemic. “Currently, the epidemic in China is ... spreading rapidly, and under such circumstances no matter how strong the prevention and control is, it will be difficult to completely cut off the transmission chain.”

The easing of President Xi Jinping “zero-Covid” policy followed nationwide protests against harsh virus rules that had battered the economy and confined millions to their homes.

China is now facing a surge of cases it is ill-prepared to handle, with millions of elderly not fully vaccinated and underfunded hospitals lacking capacity to take on huge numbers of patients.

AFP