President Donald Trump has terminated Dr. Anthony Fauci’s protective security detail which was paid for by American taxpayers.
Fauci retired from his federal government roles in late December 2022, just days before Republicans took control of the House of Representatives.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) requested security for Fauci in 2020.
The security was meant to protect him from threats he received as the top health official and public spokesperson during the pandemic.
However, taxpayers have continued to pay for Fauci’s security after he retired, despite him being a private citizen.
That security detail has now ended after it was pulled by Trump on Thursday night, CNN first reported.
Trump was asked about the decision Friday while visiting Asheville, North Carolina, to tour areas impacted by Hurricane Helene.
“I think, you know, when you work for the government, at some point your security detail comes off and, you know, you can’t have them forever,” Trump said.
“We took some off other people, too, but you can’t have a security detail for the rest of your life because you work for the government,” he added.
Trump earlier revoked the security clearances of 51 intelligence officials, as Slay News reports.
They had wrongly claimed that Hunter Biden’s laptop had “all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.”
In the same order, Trump also revoked the security clearance of former national security advisor John Bolton.
In addition, Trump also pulled the security details provided to Bolton and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Asked if he would feel partially responsible if something were to happen to Fauci or Bolton, Trump said he would not.
“No. You know, they all made a lot of money,” Trump said.
“They can hire their own security.”
The president added that he knows several good security firms and “can give them some good numbers.”
“Certainly I would not take responsibility,” he said.
Former President Joe Biden offered a preemptive pardon to Fauci on his way out of office to shield him from Trump’s supposed retribution.
However, Fauci was at the center of allegations that he played a role in the origins of the Covid pandemic and later used his position to cover it up.
Although he had criticized Fauci’s pandemic response, Trump rarely suggested that he was seeking any sort of retribution against former top health officials.
It’s more likely that Trump pulled Fauci’s security detail because he’s incredibly unpopular among taxpayers who have been paying for his protection.
Fauci served as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases from 1984 to 2022.
He also served as the chief medical advisor to Biden from 2021 to 2022.
