Fauci Awarded $1 Million Prize for 'Defending Science'
Dr. Anthony Fauci has won the $1 million Dan David Prize for “defending science” and advocating for vaccines now being administered worldwide to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
The Israel-based Dan David Foundation on Monday named President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser as the winner of one of three prizes.
It said he had earned the recognition over a lifetime of leadership on HIV research and AIDS relief, as well as his advocacy for the vaccines against COVID-19.
In its statement, the private foundation did not mention former President Donald Trump, under whom Fauci served for most of the pandemic, but it credited Fauci with “courageously defending science in the face of uninformed opposition during the challenging COVID crisis.”
“As the COVID-19 pandemic unraveled, [Fauci] leveraged his considerable communication skills to address people gripped by fear and anxiety and worked relentlessly to inform individuals in the United States and elsewhere about the public health measures essential for containing the pandemic’s spread,” the foundation’s awards committee said, praising him for “speaking truth to power in a highly charged political environment.”
Fauci, 80, has served seven presidents and has been the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984.
In recent interviews, he has claimed it was difficult at times to work for Trump.
“It was very clear that there were things that were said, be it regarding things like hydroxychloroquine and other things, that really was uncomfortable because they were not based in scientific fact,” he said at a recent White House briefing. He added that he took “no pleasure” in having to contradict the president.
Fauci has said working under Biden is “liberating.”
Dr. Fauci on working under Biden: “It is somewhat of a liberating feeling.” pic.twitter.com/XDb99sBVoQ
— The Hill (@thehill) January 21, 2021
He has been criticized for offering contradictory advice related to COVID-19, including on the use of masks, the effectiveness of double masking and the timing of reopening schools.
SUPERCUT!
Meet the highest-paid federal employee, the Janus-faced Fauci pic.twitter.com/rJH7L5JkBU
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) February 3, 2021
A disaster for Fauci’s credibility.
He’s been calling for schools to reopen for months, noting that spread among children is minimal
Now he’s saying they can’t open until Biden’s uber-political stimulus bill passes?
Science changes based on what’s on the Senate floor? pic.twitter.com/hTkNm3sbwP
— Matt Whitlock (@mattdizwhitlock) February 14, 2021
Previous recipients of the Dan David Prize have included liberal politicians (former Vice President Al Gore and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair) and cultural figures (cellist Yo-Yo Ma, novelist Margaret Atwood and filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen).
The prize, established in 2000, gives $1 million awards in three categories each year for contributions addressing the past, present and future.
Fauci won the prize for achievement in the “present,” in the field of public health, the foundation said.
Professors Alison Bashford, Katharine Park and Keith Wailoo, working in the field of history and health medicine, won the “Past” category.
The pioneers of an anti-cancer immunotherapy, professor Zelig Eshhar, Dr. Carl June and Dr. Steven Rosenberg, won the “Future” category.
The foundation is based at Tel Aviv University, where it provides grants to a number of programs in the humanities and social sciences. The foundation sets aside 10 percent of the prize money for scholarships.
Foundation Director Ariel David, son of the prize founder, said this year’s laureates “have probed how humanity has dealt with sickness and pandemics throughout history; they have provided relief, guidance and leadership in dealing with current outbreaks … and they are at the forefront of discovering new treatments that give us hope for the future in the ongoing battle against cancer and other diseases.”
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The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.
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