President Trump dismissed the concerns of the government’s top infectious disease expert about the upcoming NFL season taking place during a pandemic.
Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said the season is unlikely to happen “unless players are essentially in a bubble.”
On Friday, Trump said Fauci “has nothing to do” with the NFL.
“They are planning a very safe and controlled opening,” Trump tweeted.
Tony Fauci has nothing to do with NFL Football. They are planning a very safe and controlled opening. However, if they don’t stand for our National Anthem and our Great American Flag, I won’t be watching!!!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 19, 2020
Fauci recommended that players be “insulated from the community” and take a coronavirus test “nearly every day.”
“If there is a second wave, which is certainly a possibility and which would be complicated by the predictable flu season, football may not happen this year,” he said.
The league has already released its 2020 schedule, although it’s unclear if the games will actually be played.
Trump insisted he would not watch any of the games if players kneel for the national anthem, indicating that an internal effort to persuade the president to change his position on the protests is making little headway.
Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson said Monday that several administration officials have tried to convince Trump to give up his opposition to the players who kneel in protest of police brutality and racial injustice.
“I don’t think he has manifested as much animosity in that region lately. And I think we just continue to work him. He’ll get there,” Carson said.
