Trump says Navarro shouldn't have written op-ed slamming Fauci

[groundloop]

Source: CBS News

Washington — President Trump on Wednesday chided White House trade adviser Peter Navarro for an op-ed he wrote condemning Dr. Anthony Fauci and claiming the leading infectious disease expert has been wrong on numerous occasions during the coronavirus pandemic.

"He made a statement representing himself," Mr. Trump told reporters before departing the White House for Atlanta. "He shouldn't be doing that. No, I have a very good relationship with Anthony."

Mr. Trump's pushback of Navarro's piece comes after the White House attempted to distance itself from the op-ed, which was published by USA Today on Tuesday evening.

"The Peter Navarro op-ed didn't go through normal White House clearance processes and is the opinion of Peter alone," White House director or strategic communications Alyssa Farah tweeted, adding that Mr. Trump "values the expertise of the medical professionals advising his administration."

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/peter-navarro-anthony-fauci-white-house-op-ed/

---

So now Navarro is getting thrown under the bus after doing tRump's bidding.

[bucolic_frolic]

1. Is this a manufactured popularity ploy?

Trump defending Fauci makes Trump seem slightly reasonable. Trump is slick, he could move to the center between now and election day.

[George II]

4. "Slightly" being the key word. Definitely very very slightly.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. Trump isn't slick and he's not strategic. He saw that the criticisms of Fauci

weren't playing well so he disavowed Navarro's comments. He probably told Navarro to do it in the first place but when he saw that it bombed, he wanted nothing to do with it.

[LiberalLovinLug]

8. Bingo!

Navarro was probably sooooooooo excited to be a part of Trump's inner cult circle. To perform his part.

But if it doesn't go down well, then he is expendable. Like so many others before him.

Why do I always think of this old cartoon when I see a Trump sycophant grovelling to him.

[regnaD kciN]

21. It's the standard Trump script...

Order someone to carry out a hit on an opponent, and then throw that person under the bus and disclaim all knowledge when there's blowback.

In fact, it's the standard Mob script, which is pretty much the "code" by which he was brought up, thanks to Dad and Roy Cohn.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

22. Yes, exactly, especially if the hit doesn't poll well.

[aggiesal]

25. I agree ...

Who's kidding who here?

Pendejo45 told Navarro to write the Op-Ed, and when he saw the polls
going against the Op-Ed, Pendejo45 comes out with this?

I'm not buying it.

We know the WH is trying to discredit Dr. Fauci, so the op-ed falls in line.

[calguy]

2. We all know trump told him to write it

Navarro doesn't do anything unless trump tells him to do it.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Everything Trump touches dies.

Do His Lardship's bidding - but then if it doesn't poll well, all of a sudden he doesn't know you and you find yourself staring at the underside of a bus chassis.

[aggiesal]

26. Every strategy that Pendejo45 has tried on CoronaVirus has NOT worked ...

Doesn't matter what it is, it just doesn't work.
1) The coronavirus doesn't care what your political leanings are, it will attack you regardless.
2) We don't have a National Strategy, instead we have a 50-Individual State Strategy
So if you live in Texas, Florida, Oklahoma, Arizona ... you can visit New York where
the pandemic is not as bad any longer and reintroduce the virus there.
3) Did I mention that the coronavirus doesn't care what your political leanings are?

They're all COVIDIOTS

[DBoon]

6. Is that a bus approaching?

Is Navarro being tossed to the ground as the bus approaches?

[Xipe Totec]

9. Fire truck. It's the latest fad. nt

[rpannier]

28. Not with trump. He's more old fashioned

Throws them overboard with cement around their ankles

[grumpyduck]

7. Well, maybe Fauci could do an op-ed on Navarro's trade negotiations.

And see how he likes it.

[SergeStorms]

10. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink...

say no more.

"

[HotTeaBag]

11. INT. Oval Office - Day

Trump:
I gotta find someone to knock Fauci down a peg.

Miller:
Let me put something in his lemonade - or make a call to MBS.

Trump:
Nah, I don't want to kill him - yet.

McEnany:
Why don't we write an Op-ed that says how much he sucks and how stupid he is and place it in like, I dunno, in a newspaper or something.

Meadows:
Can anyone around here write?

Navarro:
I once wrote a birthday card.

Trump:
Good enough for me - write a - what'd you call it sweetheart?

McEnany:
An Op-ed

Trump:
Right, make one of those and send it to wherever. But Peter, you know that once people read it I'll have to throw you under the bus on it.

Navarro:
Got it boss.

Trump:
And Peter?

Navarro:
Yes Sir?

Trump:
Hand me that chicken breast, it reminds me of Ivanka and I want to suck on it for a little while.

[SergeStorms]

18. I like the dialogue....

but.......do they make silicone chicken breasts?

[soothsayer]

12. Lets him play both sides. He slanders fauci, but also defends him

It’s a win win for Trump

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

14. No, it isn't a win. He saw that Navarro's op-ed caught a lot of criticism

so he backtracked and disavowed his guy Navarro, which just makes him look weak.

[soothsayer]

16. Not sure. He got his slam out there, and at the same time could play the hero.

I think that’s the strategy, rather than having it be a trial balloon.

This whole week has seen stories decrying the discrediting of fauci, with that list of “all the times fauci was wrong” sent to reporters this weekend. They already knew how it played.

But... idk.

[SergeStorms]

19. Navarro....

he was the coffee boy for awhile, wasn't he? Or should I say, "covfefe" boy?

[FarPoint]

13. Ohhh Fuuuuu !!!

I just feel drenched in tRump slime every day....We need the " Trump Busters!"

[KS Toronado]

17. Calling all "trumpig Busters" to active duty Nov 3rd

[cstanleytech]

15. Bet you he had Trump's consent to do it beforehand and this is

simply Trump pretending to chide one of his people for something they did in the hopes of generating positive PR.

[moonscape]

20. Good cop/bad cop latest strategy? n/t

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

23. Has Fat Donnie fired Navarro?

Then he is lying -- again

[Zorro]

24. Heard on MSNBC it's a setup to start discrediting Fauci now

to blunt his possible criticism of a dubious October Covid vaccine announcement, which Trump and the Republicans will use for their political ends.

[blakstoneranger]

27. Wow

Trump is right, he didn't know, but he approved it.

When trump's DNI and other officials failed to inform him that russia placed bounties on our troops, trump claimed he didn't know
Trump was right he didn't know, but he approved it. They knew he didn't want to know anything about russia so they didn't bring him any bad news. Some may have tried to sneak it into his daily briefs but unless those daily briefs were his underwear, he was never going to read it. So they did what trump wanted them to do--hide negative russia data.

LEADERSHIP BY CHAOS! He can never be blamed for the actions of others, cause he didn't know!!

NOTICE HOW THEY ALL STILL HAVE THEIR JOBS IN THE TRUMP ADMIN? NO ONE FIRING, NOT ONE!

[cab67]

29. shouldn't have written it?

Why the fuck did USA Today publish it? Someone over there needs to lose their job over this.