At the October presidential debate over thirty years ago, Ann Compton, the White House correspondent for ABC News, asked then-Vice President George H.W. Bush to identify an American hero to whom young people could look up and aspire.
The answer the late president gave at the time serves as a reminder that Dr. Anthony Fauci, an immunologist who has since established a strong presence as the White House coronavirus expert, has been drawing positive attention for his work research since the 1980s.
“…people that are clean and honorable and out there, setting a pace – I think of Dr. Fauci,” Bush said during the 1988 Los Angeles debate with Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis.
“You’ve probably never heard of him,” remarked Bush. “He’s a very fine researcher, top doctor at National Institute of Health, working hard doing something, research on this disease of AIDS.”
The footage, which was uncovered by C-Span Communications Director Howard Mortman, was posted to Twitter on Saturday evening, and can be viewed below:
10/13/1988 debate: @AnnCompton asks Bush & Dukakis who their heroes are, “point out to young Americans as figures who should inspire this country?”
Bush: “Fauci …top doctor at NIH, working hard doing something about research on this disease of AIDS”
h/t @mschlapp via @bterris pic.twitter.com/2Q9WUVoUXB— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) March 21, 2020
According to the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases, President Ronald Reagan appointed Dr. Fauci as director in 1984, where he has become the 41st most cited researcher, of any field, of all time. The website also reports that Dr. Fauci has advised a half-dozen U.S. presidents about public health issues.
Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, Dr. Fauci has gained a near-universal reputation as being a trustworthy source of information.
As The Daily Wire previously reported, Dr. Fauci dismissed widespread allegations last week that President Trump or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were responsible for delayed coronavirus testing.
“It was a complicated series of multiple things that conflated that just, you know, went the wrong way. One of them was a technical glitch that slowed things down in the beginning. Nobody’s fault. There weren’t any bad guys there. It just happened,” said Dr. Fauci.
In a New York Times op-ed, Maureen Dowd praised Dr. Fauci in a column titled, “Thank God the Doctor Is In,” which features the lead-in, “It’s not easy being a national treasure.” Last week, CNN ran a story that referred to the immunologist as “a rare source of frank honesty from within the White House.”
As The Daily Wire previously reported, Dr. Fauci has noted that the Trump administration’s new guidelines, which instruct Americans to avoid gatherings of more than ten people until March 31, are an appropriate measure given the current stage of the pandemic.
“It will always seem that the best way to address it would be to be doing something that looks like it might be an overreaction. It isn’t an overreaction. It’s a reaction we feel is commensurate which is actually going on in reality,” said Dr. Fauci last week.
In response to the coronavirus pandemic, President Trump has encouraged the public to remain optimistic in the face of an “invisible enemy.”
“I want all Americans to understand: we are at war with an invisible enemy, but that enemy is no match for the spirit and resolve of the American people,” said Trump. “It cannot overcome the dedication of our doctors, nurses, and scientists — and it cannot beat the LOVE, PATRIOTISM, and DETERMINATION of our citizens. Strong and United, WE WILL PREVAIL!”