Newly released diary entries reveal that as COVID-19 deaths mounted around the world, former White House COVID adviser Dr.Anthony Fauci became increasingly fixated on his newfound celebrity.Released by Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rand Paul, the journals chronicle Fauci's day-to-day role during the COVID-19 crisis through conversations with President Donald Trump, governors and world leaders, media appearances and his personal observations as the pandemic unfolded.Paul, a longtime Fauci critic who frequently clashed with Fauci over the federal response and the origins of the virus, made the diaries public as part of the committee's ongoing oversight investigation.
The release comes days before Fauci is scheduled to testify before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee after being subpoenaed by Paul.GABBARD SAYS DECLASSIFIED BIOLAB RECORDS VALIDATE CONCERNS PREVIOUSLY DISMISSED AS MISINFORMATIONFauci served as chief medical adviser to President Donald Trump during the COVID-19 pandemic before later continuing in the role under President Joe Biden.(Win McNamee/Getty Images)A surprising recurring theme throughout the diaries is Fauci's growing awareness of his own public profile during the most intense months of the pandemic, which ultimately claimed more than 7 million officially reported lives worldwide, including roughly 1.2 million in the United States.On April 7, 2020, after recording the latest pandemic developments, Fauci wrote: "Press still hot and heavy about me.
Multiple stories per day directly or indirectly involving me."SLACK MESSAGES RELEASED BY RAND PAUL APPEAR TO SHOW AUTHORS OF KEY COVID-19 ORIGIN PAPER HELD PRIVATE DOUBTSDr.Anthony Fauci, who led the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, became a central figure in the federal government's response to COVID-19.
(Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)By May 21, after recording the latest pandemic figures — nearly 98,000 global deaths and more than 27...