Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Sunday that Americans should just avoid large family gatherings and parties this coming Christmas season lest they want to experience yet another COVID surge this winter season.
During an interview with "Face the Nation" host Margaret Brennan, the controversial National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director said that "it's just too soon to tell" whether people can finally get together and celebrate the season with loved ones.
"We've just got to concentrate on continuing to get those numbers down and not try to jump ahead by weeks or months and say what we're going to do at a particular time," Dr. Fauci recommended, underscoring once again the importance of getting vaccinated, as reported by CBS News.
The NIAID director added that there must be a "laser-like focus" on continuing to get the number of new COVID cases down by getting vaccinated and for those who are eligible, getting the booster shot.
On Friday, the U.S. hit the 700,000 mark for COVID deaths. But the number of new cases, hospitalizations, and deaths caused by the highly contagious Delta variant appears to have stabilized. Dr. Fauci said, however, that Americans must not get complacent because historical records show that whenever new cases slow down or hit an all time low, it shoots back up.
Dr. Fauci argued that "with vaccination and with mitigation," the U.S. can finally stop the spread of COVID. According to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data, 77.6% of Americans aged 18 and above are fully vaccinated, while 75.8% of those aged 12 and above have been fully vaccinated against COVID.
Dr. Fauci's bleak outlook for the holiday season of 2021 was met with intense backlash from critics and the online community alike, The Blaze reported. People online blasted Dr. Fauci for hinting at preventing Americans from spending time with their loved ones on such an important holiday.
"Someone tell this guy that we celebrated Christmas together with our families last year & are going to do it again this year," U.S. Senate candidate Sean Parnell declared, citing former member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force Deborah Birx, who defied her own COVID rules to visit relatives during Thanksgiving week last year.
"Even Dr. Birx, at the height of the pandemic, blew him off & traveled to celebrate Thanksgiving with her family. Dr. Fauci, please just go away."
Fox News host Laura Ingraham also took to Twitter to share the same sentiment, writing, "That anyone would seek Fauci's advice about whether they can be with their friends and family is deeply disturbing."
Conservative commentator Matt Walsh wrote, "If you have family members who are still waiting for Fauci's permission to live their lives, they aren't worth inviting to your Christmas celebration anyway."
Entrepreneur Joe Pompliano decried Dr. Fauci's fear mongering, pointing out how ludicrous it was that the NIAID director warned against gathering this Christmas when Alabama, Penn State, and LSU all had over a hundred thousand fans packed in their stadium last week.
Republican Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona mused, "I don't know what Fauci would do without COVID."
