(RightWing.org) – If former president Donald Trump returns to the White House in January, he might launch a prosecution of Dr Anthony Fauci. The health chief has faced years of criticism for his response to the 2020 pandemic; Trump hinted that he wants to hold him accountable for that. On the other hand, he could also pardon Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.
Trump Blasts Pandemic Doctor
On May 25, Trump appeared at the Libertarian Party’s national convention in Washington, DC. His main goal was to persuade Libertarians to vote for him in November, but he also let slip some interesting hints about what he might do if he defeats President Biden and gets back into the White House. Some of these — for example, the possibility of pardoning internet financier Ross Ulbricht — came out during his convention speech. Others emerged in a pre-conference interview with independent journalist Tim Pool.
In that interview, Pool asked Trump if he planned to hold Fauci accountable for lying to Congress, and if he would appoint an attorney general willing to prosecute the renegade doctor. Trump replied “Yeah,” then went on to say he’d be looking at the statute of limitations on Fauci’s alleged offenses, which he said was “quite long.”
Fauci is a sore point with Trump and many other Conservatives. Trump appointed him to the White House Coronavirus Task Force in January 2020, at which point Fauci publicly said the virus wasn’t a major threat to the US public. However, after President Biden was inaugurated, Fauci changed tack and became a vocal supporter of lockdowns and other restrictive policies. Fauci’s advice to the Biden administration imposed huge hardships on working Americans, while his own net wealth increased by an estimated $5 million during the pandemic. Since then Fauci has become a hate figure for Republicans, many of whom blame him for the economic damage inflicted by Biden’s pandemic policies.
Trump told Pool that Fauci hadn’t been “a big player” under his administration, but had become prominent under Biden, who “made him the king of everything.”
Pardon for Assange?
Moving on from Fauci, Trump said he would seriously consider pardoning Julian Assange, the South-African born founder of Wikileaks, who’s been indicted on 18 federal espionage and classified documents charges. Assange hasn’t actually been convicted of anything yet, which could mean discussing a pardon is premature. Right now he’s in custody in Britain, where he’s fighting efforts to extradite him to the US.
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