I wouldn’t want to be Dr. Anthony Fauci right now any more than I would want to be a police officer. Both are now subjected to incredible scrutiny by an increasingly jaded public.

Without accusing Fauci of being an adherent of scientism, I must say that his self-portrayal as one who “sticks to the facts and evidence” ought to have a few major qualifications if scores of journalists and laypeople are going to embrace it. In a recent interview for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’s podcast Learning Curve, Fauci said, “I do stick to the science. I have the responsibility, which I take very seriously, of always being consistent and basing what you say on evidence.”