'The Five' react to de Blasio's vaccine expansion mandates as Biden walks back omicron severity
Co-hosts break down the national reaction to the COVID-19 omicron variant.
"The Five" hosts tore into Dr. Anthony Fauci on Monday for appearing to downplay his previously dire warnings on the new COVID-19 omicron variant.
"For Dr. Fauci again to go out and scare the entire country in the world into thinking this is going to be the death of everything again did immeasurable harm," co-host Katie Pavlich said.
The White House last week, at the direction of Dr. Fauci, implemented travel restrictions, extended mask mandates and launched new testing requirements after the omicron variant was reported in the United States.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2021. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
On Sunday, the chief White House medical adviser appeared to walk back his earlier warnings, telling viewers during a CNN appearance that the variant appears not to have "a great degree of severity to it."
"People are listening to him, including the teachers union and everything else," Pavlich said, accusing Fauci of causing "an insane amount of harm" with his premature statements.
Because of his initial predictions, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul canceled elective surgeries last week statewide, Pavlich pointed out.
A person takes COVID-19 test at mobile testing site near Grand Central Terminal on Friday, Dec. 3, 2021, in New York. The omicron variant of COVID-19, which had been undetected in the U.S. before the middle of this week, had been discovered in at least five states by the end of Thursday. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura) (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamur)
"They have not balanced any of this out and yet they continue to push this narrative of gloom and doom forever because they like power and can’t get themselves off of it and are willing to do whatever it takes to stay in power," Pavlich said, "and continue to push the narrative as the mayor of New York did today, without real science behind it."
Co-host Jesse Watters said Fauci's public handling of the new variant is "a case study [of] why we don’t like" him.
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"He talks too much," Watters said. "He is not the announcer like it is a sporting event, we do that. We are doing the day-to-day commentary as things develop. I want him to say, ‘you know what, we are going to study it. And then when he studies that he comes out and tells the facts.’"
"Fauci needs to stop speculating and tell us what the facts are," Watters continued, "and then we can make our own judgments."
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