The CDC has flip-flopped on masks for the vaccinated based on new science that will be revealed to the public in a few days, apparently. CDC Director Rochelle Walensky and Dr. Anthony Fauci will insist that they’re just going where the science leads them, but the messaging has been terrible: does the current vaccine guard against the dreaded Delta variant or not? We saw a tweet from CNN earlier reporting that Pfizer is going to recommend a third jab, so even if you’re vaccinated, you’re not vaccinated.
Drew Holden has put together another thread, this one chronicling Fauci’s recommendations since the start of the pandemic.
🧵THREAD🧵
We’ve all seen the various flip-flops of the CDC and Dr. Anthony Fauci over the last 18 months.
To help keep track, I present “Fauci vs. Fauci,” chronicling the twists, turns, contradictions and backtracks from the man and his agency.⤵️
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
To start, we need to focus on Dr. Fauci’s perspective on the virus itself and it’s risk to the United States.
In late January 2020, Fauci said that COVID was a “very, very low risk to the United States.”
I think it goes without saying that his perspective has evolved since. pic.twitter.com/KIVjPlbd9w
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
That’s when media outlets were telling us to worry about the flu, not the coronavirus.
One big, obvious area of flipping is around the benefits of wearing a mask. Dr. Fauci originally said that masks weren’t effective & publicly encouraged Americans not to buy them (guidance he doesn’t regret).
Now even vaccinated people need to wear masks. pic.twitter.com/91R4h6K4vy
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
And it wasn’t just the efficacy of masks in general. Less than a month ago , Dr. Fauci declared confidently that the CDC wasn’t going to change its recommendation about masking given the Delta variant.
We’ve already seen changes, and more are under consideration. pic.twitter.com/fyPGsEKux8
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
Recommended
And how many masks were we all supposed to wear, anyway?
Was it one mask? Two masks? No mask? A face shield? Goggles? Depending on when you asked Dr. Fauci, it could’ve been anything. pic.twitter.com/v9f0VccSu0
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
Dr. Fauci was a leading voice suggesting for months that the pandemic couldn’t possibly have leaked from a lab in Wuhan (one that received US tax dollars, by the way).
That was until the consensus changed. And then, suddenly, the theory couldn’t be dismissed.
Complete 180 pic.twitter.com/yGvjpKJd0s
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
These reversals cut in both directions. Back in September, the CDC changed its rules – reportedly under political pressure – to reduce the people it advised getting tested, before quickly reversing course after pressure. pic.twitter.com/dvVvXs96NA
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
And you may have forgotten, but the CDC had a brouhaha also in September when new guidance about airborne transmission – including beyond 6 feet – went live on the agency’s website.
It was quickly scrubbed after a brief medical & news firestorm.
Not exactly confidence-inspiring pic.twitter.com/UubBsvzH3u
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
We’re seeing the word “reverses” a lot.
Schools have seen lots of reversals. In February, the CDC Director said schools could reopen safely w/o teachers vaccinated.
Well, a few calls from the teachers union later, the CDC reversed course. Weeks later, new guidance (sensing a theme?) was released focusing on teachers. pic.twitter.com/U4NJYxGMZ5
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
And we had plenty of flips when it came to teachers wearing masks.
First, the CDC said that they had to, back in May 2020.
Then earlier this month, the CDC said vaccinated teachers and students don’t need one.
But now? Back to where we started – masks for the vaccinated. pic.twitter.com/5IWNyKgY8v
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
And who could forget the approval, then pause, then unpause of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, a move that diminished American confidence in vaccines in the midst of a vaccine rollout during a global pandemic? pic.twitter.com/Rxm6SMPCb5
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
The coronavirus pandemic is unlike anything any of us have seen before. There should be some charity and humility about bad predictions.
But the idea that Dr. Fauci and the CDC haven’t flip-flopped? That’s just preposterous. pic.twitter.com/4cvG8y9Pn5
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
Is it any wonder Americans don’t trust public health experts after this? Does it surprise anyone that Dr. Fauci and the CDC aren’t seen as reputable now?
These failures have consequences, and you can measure them in lives.
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) July 28, 2021
They claim the science evolved. If they hadn't of been saying every word is the gospel truth at every turn and anyone who said something else was a conspiracy theorist, I would give them the benefit of a doubt.
— Steve, with a fist full of 16 pennies #Pathead (@Noone86595893) July 28, 2021
And then we’re supposed to trust the guardians of social media to protect us from misinformation. They’ve clamped down on open discussion and entrusted everything to the CDC’s website. At least the media kept busy speculating on whether Fauci was the sexiest man alive.
Related:
Dr. Anthony Fauci explains that 'the CDC hasn't really flip-flopped at all' on masks, because he thinks you're all stupid amnesiacs https://t.co/dpEqNjzUcD
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) July 28, 2021
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