Tension between President Donald Trump and Anthony Fauci continues to rise as the president claimed the infectious disease expert criticized his decision to stop travel to China.
During an interview with Fox Business' "Mornings With Maria" on Thursday, Trump said Fauci disagreed with his move to shut down travel from China.
“I was criticized by everybody, including Dr. Fauci. I put in a wall. We put in a pretty strong wall. Only a small number of people were allowed in and they were all U.S. citizens,” Trump told Maria Bartiromo. “And then I put up a barrier to Europe, too.”
Trump said ultimately Fauci came around and said the president's decision "saved hundreds of thousands of lives."
Trump and Fauci have clashed over how to respond to the coronavirus pandemic for months.
On Wednesday, Trump disagreed with Fauci’s Tuesday testimony to a Senate committee that reopening the country too soon would lead to death and suffering, The Hill reports.
“Look, he wants to play all sides of the equation," Trump told reporters when asked about Fauci's comments on reopening.
Trump specifically took issue with Fauci’s stance on reopening schools.
"I was surprised by his answer actually," Trump said of Fauci’s warnings. "It’s just, to me it’s not an acceptable answer, especially when it comes to schools."
Trump reiterated to Bartiromo that he disagrees with Fauci on when to reopen states.
"Anthony is a good person, a very good person," said Trump. "I disagreed with him. When I closed the border to China, he disagreed with that, and ultimately he agreed. He said I saved hundreds of thousands of lives, which is what happened."
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