Giving yet another reason to throw CNN+ into the dustbin of history, Thursday’s edition of The SourceKasie Hunt (host) and David Chalian, CNN’s political director, agreed with Dr. Anthony Fauci. They said that the CDC should be independent of judicial oversight. He even argued the courts shouldn’t have the authority to undo the federal mask mandate for public transportation.
“Politically, it’s kind of a lose-lose for the Biden administration,” Hunt lamented at the top of the show. “They were considering lifting the ban in just a matter of weeks but now they are forced to appeal the judge’s ruling in order to protect the CDC’s power in future pandemics.”
In his office and surrounded by Fauci-branded tchotchkes, Hunt then elevated Fauci’s displeasure with the idea of a part of the executive branch being subjected to judicial oversight by a federal court in Florida:
It was both surprising and disappointing to find out that these types of issues are within the purviews of the CDC. This is a problem of public health. And for a court to come in – and is you look at the rationale for that, it really is not partially firm. We are worried about this. It is concerning courts becoming involved with decisions which are unambiguously public health related. This is a CDC matter, and it shouldn’t have been a court problem.
The man who thinks he’s the physical embodiment of science argued that the court shouldn’t have the ability to strike down the CDC’s overreaches. “[I]t’s because that’s no place for the courts to do that,” Fauci huffed. “This is a CDC decision and that’s very bad precedent; when you have courts making a decision and looking at what the bases of the decision was, it was not sound.”
They cut to the live interview after that segment. CNN’s political director David Chalian supported Fauci and suggested, with no evidence, that most of the country wasn’t eager to give up their masks.
However, there is a division in politics. It’s not like some lopsided sense that everybody in the country wants to be done with masks. That’s not the case.As with many things related to this virus it became politicized.
“But Fauci has a different role to play,” he touted. “And he has to preserve or at least he feels he has to preserve that prospect in future pandemics for the CDC to be the entity that actually gets to set this policy and have a court come in at the last minute and do so.”
The only person speaking any sense on the set was a former top aide to John Boehner, Brendan Buck who called out Fauci’s ridiculous demand to be above oversight.
He pointed out how Fauci and the CDC think “only” the “public health component” of the pandemic matters when “the things that we’ve done to combat this virus have had an effect on the economy, had an effect on children.”
“And sometimes those effects have been dismissed and anything – if you want to raise other sides of things, it’s talked about as an attack on science. And it’s not. Science is really important, but so are some of these other things,” he said to the dead silence of the rest of the panel.
You can find the transcript below. To read it, please click on “expand”.
CNN+’s The Source
April 21, 2022
Eastern, 4:01:37KASIE HUNT: This week a federal judge in Florida struck down the government’s transportation mask mandate, so you don’t have to wear one on an airplane. The Justice Department is appealing.
Politically, it’s kind of a lose-lose for the Biden administration. They were considering lifting the ban in just a matter of weeks but now they are forced to appeal the judge’s ruling in order to protect the CDC’s power in future pandemics.
Today, I had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Fauci at the NIH office about his thoughts as he read about this ruling.
[Cuts to video]
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI: This is a problem that the CDC can address. I found it both surprising and disappointing. This is a problem of public health. And for a court to come in – and is you look at the rationale for that, it really is not partially firm. We are worried about this. The possibility of courts being involved in matters that are clearly public health issues. This is a CDC matter, and it shouldn’t have been a court problem.
So, we’re hoping that the inevitable increase in cases which we’re seeing are not going to be associated with an increase in hospitalizations. So, all of these dynamic things going on at the same time, it was perfectly logical for the CDC to say, ‘wait a minute, we were planning on ending this mandate on a certain date. Let’s wait a period of time until May 3, which was a very sound public health decision.”
It is quite unfortunate that a court would interfere with this. It’s unfortunate because it’s against public health principles, number one. And number two, it’s because that’s no place for the courts to do that. This is a CDC decision and that’s very bad precedent; when you have courts making a decision and looking at what the bases of the decision was, it was not sound.
(…)
Eastern at 4:05 p.m.
DAVID CHALLIAN: The politics of course are divided. It’s not like some lopsided sense that everybody in the country wants to be done with masks. That’s not the case. As with many things related to this virus, it became politicized.
Fauci however has a new role. He has to protect, or at minimum feel he should preserve the prospect of future pandemics where the CDC will be the one that sets the policy. A court can also intervene in the final minutes.
(…)
Eastern at 4:07 p.m.
BRENDAN BUCK: The thing I took issue with – with Dr. Fauci there was he said this is ‘clearly a public health issue.’ And of course, there’s a public health component to it. But what CDC and Dr. Fauci have said over and over and over again seems to suggest that’s the ONLY factor that should weigh in. There are many factors.
You know, when the things that we’ve done to combat this virus have had an effect on the economy, had an effect on children. And sometimes those effects have been dismissed and anything – if you want to raise other sides of things, it’s talked about as an attack on science. And it’s not. Although science is very important, some other areas are equally as important.
And here again, he seems to think that his position, the CDC’s position is the only one that matters. It is important that the Biden White House considers a number of additional factors.
(…)
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