USA TODAY International Edition
Other views: ‘ I’m not looking to be vindicated’
Dr. Birx, “Face the Nation,” CBS: I’m not looking to be vindicated. ... In that moment I think my service was important. I think it was important to make progress in testing. I think it was important in making progress with some of the therapeutics. ... We had great innovation in vaccines. ... I was focused solely on the mission, and the mission was to try to save as many American lives during this pandemic as possible. And so I couldn’t get distracted on vindicating myself or ... coming back to the press and saying that’s not what happened. That would waste my energy.
Paul Waldman, The Washington Post: If you’re looking for an excellent case study in the trickiness of transitioning from one administration to another — particularly when one is President Trump’s — look no further than the differing fortunes of Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx. ... Whatever might have happened behind the scenes, Fauci’s occasional contradictions of Trump’s loonier pronouncements helped win him hero status, his reputation only enhanced by gaining the contempt of Trump and his supporters. ... Birx, on the other hand, succeeded in maintaining a relationship with Trump, and you could argue ( as she surely would) that she was able to do more good from there, even if it meant every now and again trying gingerly to explain it away when Trump promoted unreliable treatments or suggested injecting bleach. ... Birx’s story shines a light on one way this presidential transition is different from those before: While every new administration has some measure of distaste for potential holdovers who worked too hard to advance the goals of the previous one, there’s a profound moral stain that will attach to almost anyone who voluntarily worked for Trump.
Megan Ranney, CNN: As a clinician-scientist( and public health professional ), I have criticized Birx. But I also have to wonder: What went wrong? ... Accepting a job working for Donald Trump was her first and worst mistake. She, like many of us, had no idea how badly his administration would distort, ignore and deny science ... during the pandemic. Although she said she took the job out of a sense of obligation ... Birx became inextricably tied to the harmful decisions of her negligent ... boss. ... Birx’s next error was allowing the regime’s lies to go unchecked. It’s true that she said many things right, from her first day to her last. ... But still — she could have drawn the lines of honesty and integrity much earlier.
EJ Montini, Arizona Republic: Many people pointed out after the interview on CNN that all of this happened on Birx’s watch. Dr. Jonathan Reiner of George Washington University said, “She was the White House pandemic coordinator. This was her job. And if things weren’t being done to her liking, her duty was to ... speak up.” True. But Trump supporters already weren’t listening to the experts like Birx. They were listening to Trump. They needed for him to advocate precautions. To be loud and persistent.