Tensions between Anthony FauciAnthony FauciTrump relishes return to large rallies following COVID-19 diagnosis Doctors urge Michigan stations to stop running Trump ad quoting Fauci Fauci tensions with Trump escalate over campaign ad MORE and President TrumpDonald John TrumpTwo ethics groups call on House to begin impeachment inquiry against Barr Trump relishes return to large rallies following COVID-19 diagnosis McGrath: McConnell ‘can’t get it done’ on COVID-19 relief MORE are increasing after the nation’s top infectious disease expert asked the Trump campaign to take down a new ad that features comments of his that he says were taken out of context.

The ad, released last week shortly after the president was discharged from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, touts the president’s response to the virus and includes an edited clip of Fauci that makes it seem as though he was praising Trump’s response to the pandemic.

In the 30-second spot, Fauci is heard saying, “I can’t imagine that anybody could be doing more.”

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Fauci this week said his remarks, taken from a March interview, were in reference to fellow members of the White House coronavirus task force and other public health officials.

“In my nearly five decades of public service, I have never publicly endorsed any political candidate. The comments attributed to me without my permission in the GOP campaign ad were taken out of context from a broad statement I made months ago about the efforts of federal public health officials,” Fauci said in a statement Sunday.

During an interview with CNN’s Jake TapperJacob (Jake) Paul TapperFauci tensions with Trump escalate over campaign ad Overnight Health Care: Dems hone in on ObamaCare as Supreme Court hearings begin | Fauci on planned Trump rallies: ‘Now is even a worse time to do that’ | WHO chief calls herd immunity approach ‘simply unethical’ Fauci on planned Trump rallies: ‘Now is even more so a worse time to do that’ MORE the following day, Fauci said he thinks the campaign should take down the ad.

“I think it’s really unfortunate and really disappointing that they did that,” Fauci said.

“It is so clear that I am not a political person, and I have never either directly or indirectly endorsed a political candidate, and to take a completely out-of-context statement and put it in … a political campaign ad, I thought, was really very disappointing,” Fauci said.

The rebuke from Fauci comes as the president has repeatedly meddled with decisionmaking at the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), often without much if any pushback from those agencies.

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Trump has also lashed out at those agency heads, undermining their public messaging.

Fauci’s comments, however, mark the second time in as many weeks that he has publicly distanced himself from Trump.

During the first presidential debate, on Sept. 29, Trump suggested that his health officials have changed their minds about the benefits of masks during the pandemic, noting that the CDC has not always recommended the use of face coverings.

“Dr. Fauci said the opposite. He very strongly said masks aren’t good, and then he changed his mind. He said masks are good,” Trump said.

Fauci said later that week that his stance on the benefits of face masks was “taken out of context” and that the initial recommendation against widespread use of masks was due to a shortage for health providers.

He said scientists quickly changed their recommendations after realizing the extent to which asymptomatic spread was contributing to COVID-19 infections.

The Trump campaign’s use of Fauci’s remarks underscores how, more than six months into the pandemic, he is still viewed as a trusted source of information on the pandemic, in contrast to the president, who has faced harsh criticism throughout.

Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease expert at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security, said he can understand why the Trump campaign would want to imply an endorsement from Fauci.

“Dr. Fauci is a valuable resource and a world-renowned expert, so people will try to have his reputation kind of shower on to them, even when it’s undeserved,” Adalja said.

Yet given Trump’s propensity to lash out and contradict even his own experts, Adalja said it was “baffling and paradoxical” that Trump would want that message in his ads.

The latest dispute between Fauci and Trump also underscores what’s been a complicated relationship throughout the pandemic.

As Trump spent much of the spring and summer downplaying the extent of the pandemic, Fauci sounded the alarm, at times directly contradicting the president.

In July, Trump publicly mused about Fauci’s high favorability ratings when his were so low.

Fauci has also come under attack from some of Trump’s aides and surrogates, with the White House at one point providing a memo to reporters detailing all the “wrong” statements Fauci had made about the pandemic.

Mark Rosenberg, an epidemiologist who ran the CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control from 1994 to 1999, said he thinks Fauci has deftly walked a fine line between speaking up for science without openly criticizing Trump.

“I think he was critical of the people who put the ad together. I don’t think he personalized it … and said this was President Trump’s fault. I think he has found a way to stand up without incurring the wrath of Donald Trump,” Rosenberg said.

Rosenberg added that he isn’t worried people might lose confidence in Fauci because of the ad since it’s clear Fauci is being used.

But with Trump trailing Democratic presidential nominee Joe BidenJoe BidenMcConnell challenger dodges court packing question ‘Hamilton’ cast to reunite for Biden fundraiser Trump relishes return to large rallies following COVID-19 diagnosis MORE in national and key battleground state polls, in large part because of his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, Rosenberg said it’s likely Trump’s relationship with Fauci could deteriorate if those poll numbers decline further.

“The relationship will get worse, but I don’t think Trump will fire Fauci,” Rosenberg said, arguing a drastic action like that would just serve to highlight more of Trump’s failures.

The Trump administration on Thursday announced sweeping new sanctions on Iran’s financial sector, targeting at least 18 banks in a move that critics say will hamper humanitarian assistance during the pandemic.

The fresh round of sanctions is part of the administration’s “maximum pressure campaign” that aims to push the Islamic republic toward negotiations over its nuclear program and prevent the country from financing military actions throughout the Middle East.

“Today’s action to identify the financial sector and sanction eighteen major Iranian banks reflects our commitment to stop illicit access to U.S. dollars,” Treasury Secretary Steven MnuchinSteven Terner MnuchinOn The Money: Trump says talks on COVID-19 aid are now ‘working out’ | Pelosi shoots down piecemeal approach | Democrats raise questions about Trump tax audits House Democrats to unveil bill to create commission on ‘presidential capacity’ Trump’s new Iran sanctions raise alarm over humanitarian access MORE said in a statement.

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“Our sanctions programs will continue until Iran stops its support of terrorist activities and ends its nuclear programs. Today’s actions will continue to allow for humanitarian transactions to support the Iranian people.”

Secretary of State Mike PompeoMichael (Mike) Richard PompeoTrump’s new Iran sanctions raise alarm over humanitarian access Trump swipes at Barr, Pompeo, Wray in return to Russia investigation, Clinton emails Kardashian West uses star power to pressure US on Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict MORE on Thursday said the sanctions are directed at “the regime and its corrupt officials.”

He accused Iranian leaders of depriving funds for the Health Ministry needed to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and instead diverting it to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which the U.S. designated a terrorist organization in 2019. 

“In 2018 and 2019, Khamenei raided $4 billion from the Iranian National Development Fund for military expenses,” Pompeo said in a statement. “And while the Health Ministry was pleading for resources to protect the Iranian people from the outbreak, Khamenei instead increased funding for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, by a third, and doubled the funding for the regime’s Basij forces that terrorize the Iranian people every single day.”

Despite assurances from the Trump administration that processes are in place to ensure delivery of needed humanitarian assistance to the people of Iran, European officials and experts have expressed alarm at the wide-ranging sanctions. 

The Washington Post reported Thursday that European officials were expressing alarm at the new sanctions, saying they would effectively freeze Tehran’s access to any foreign assets and rob it of foreign currency to pay for humanitarian imports.

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The Trump administration in October 2019 worked to set up a humanitarian channel through Switzerland to deliver goods and services to Iran; the first transfer of cancer drugs and transplant medication occurred in January, and the terms of the channel were finalized in February.

But the efficacy of the channel is under scrutiny. Esfandyar Batmanghelidj, founder of Bourse and Bazaar, a news and analysis source on Iran, wrote on Twitter that pharmaceutical exports to Iran through the Swiss had declined sharply since January.

“Pharma exports to Iran were already lower after Trump reimposed sanctions in Nov 2018 *and* have yet to recover after COVID-19 halted normal trade flows. This data for Swiss exports makes the risks clear,” he wrote.

Barbara Slavin, director of the Future of Iran Initiative at the Atlantic Council, said the sanctions were “sadism masquerading as foreign policy.”

“They won’t bring the Iranian government to its knees but will hurt ordinary people, encourage more smuggling and in the long run, undermine dollar-based sanctions,” she wrote on Twitter.

Others said the move was more symbolic than impactful, viewed as election campaign rhetoric rather than meaningful policy action.

“These sanctions will neither crush Iran’s political will nor bring it back to negotiations on US terms. These appear to be messaging sanctions, with the US domestic audience the principal target,” said Daniel Fried, former coordinator for sanctions policy at the State Department and the Weiser Family Distinguished Fellow with the Atlantic Council. 

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif condemned the new sanctions in a post on Twitter, even though the social media platform is blocked in his country.

“Amid Covid19 pandemic, U.S. regime wants to blow up our remaining channels to pay for food & medicine. Iranians WILL survive this latest of cruelties. But conspiring to starve a population is a crime against humanity. Culprits & enablers—who block our money—WILL face justice,” he tweeted.

Supporters of the Trump administration’s efforts say the latest round of penalties are in line with its maximum pressure push.

Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior fellow with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, praised the new sanctions and downplayed concerns over access to humanitarian assistance.

“Fears of this impacting existing general licenses or the existing Swiss humanitarian channel are overblown. There is no better example in US history where Washington has used non-kinetic tools of punishment, and so often, with such attention paid to keeping channels open for humanitarian trade,” he said.

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“As a reminder, these sanctions could go away, just like the others, if Tehran decided to act like a normal nation and put national interest and the welfare of its own people over the revolutionary priorities of the regime.”

The new sanctions are likely to further isolate the U.S. from the international community’s engagement with Iran. Trump in 2018 withdrew the U.S. from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the Obama-era nuclear deal signed between Iran and the United Kingdom, France, Russia, China and Germany.

All five world powers and Iran have criticized Trump for leaving the deal and have further rejected the move by the administration in September to unilaterally impose snapback sanctions on Iran.

Updated at 4:40 p.m.

A federal prosecutor is calling for former New York Rep. Chris CollinsChristopher (Chris) Carl CollinsFederal prosecutor opposes delaying prison time for former Rep. Chris Collins Conspicuous by their absence from the Republican Convention NY Republican Chris Jacobs wins special election to replace Chris Collins MORE (R) to serve his prison time after lawyers for Collins filed an emergency motion earlier this month to delay his report date due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

In January, Collins was sentenced to more than two years in prison after pleading guilty on charges of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and lying to the FBI.

Collins’s lawyer, Jonathan New, has cited the pandemic as reason to continuously delay Collins’s report date to the minimum security camp Federal Prison Camp, Pensacola, with the start date of his sentence initially scheduled for March 17. 

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The 70-year-old’s age puts him at higher risk for complications from COVID-19, so the court had allowed his start date to be moved to Oct. 13.

However, New argued in an Oct. 1 filing that the date should be moved again to Dec. 8, or Collins should be allowed to serve his sentence at home. 

Audrey Strauss, the acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a Wednesday filing that the Bureau of Prisons is capable of controlling COVID-19 infection rates, with repeated COVID-19 testing and an initial quarantining process. 

“These protocols have proven successful,” Strauss wrote. “Over the past six months, not a single case of COVID-19 has been detected among the general population of prisoners at FPC Pensacola and the BOP’s screening procedures have been able to cut off potential entry points for the disease.” 

“Contrary to Collins’s suggestion, this remarkable track record cannot be explained away as a product of inadequate testing. Since the pandemic began, Pensacola, which currently houses just over 300 prisoners, has tested over 50 prisoners, including, as discussed, all prisoners entering or leaving the facility, as well as any prisoners who exhibit credible COVID-19 symptoms,” she said.

“The public has an interest in seeing justice done in this case without further delay,” Strauss said. “It is time for Collins to begin his prison sentence.”

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New filed a response on Thursday citing coronavirus cases in Florida as justification to further delay Collins’s report date. 

“Justice will not be served by requiring Mr. Collins to report to prison now,” New said in the filing.

As of Friday, the Florida Department of Health had reported a total of 728,921 cases of COVID-19 in the state, as well as 15,186 deaths as a result of the virus. While the rate of new cases in the Sunshine State has remained relatively consistent over the past month, the Florida government has recorded a steady decline in the number of daily deaths.

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U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to unveil new coronavirus measures on Monday to fight the pandemic in the country.

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Johnson plans to announce new COVID-19 protocols that will further involve local leaders, particularly from northern England which has been impacted by a recent increase in cases, Reuters reported. 

The U.K. government plans to unveil a tier system to make coronavirus restrictions easier to understand after some in Johnson’s Conservative party have alleged the confusing messaging has led to the rise in cases.

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The prime minister is hesitant to call for another national lockdown as the U.K. economy is still attempting to recover from the spring lockdown. The boost in cases leaves Johnson to balance between controlling the surge and limiting the economic effects of any restrictions. 

England’s deputy chief medical official said the U.K. is at a “tipping point,” and officials need to take action now to prevent a rising death toll, according to Reuters. 

Britain’s housing minister Robert Jenrick declined to detail Johnson’s expected announcement to Sky News beyond saying it will focus on local areas where “the virus is very strong.” He said the announcement will bring local leaders more involved with contract tracing and will release new guidance about traveling. 

Steve Rotheram, the mayor of Liverpool, said Sunday that the city is expected to fall into the tier with the strictest restrictions, which Sky News reported could mean closing bars, gyms, casinos and bookmakers. But the mayor pledged any announcement would have to involve money for the businesses being shut down.

The Labour party, which opposes the Conservative party, is advocating for more funding for businesses if they are forced to shut down.

The U.K. has documented 606,446 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 42,915 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, according to data from John’s Hopkins University.

Secretary of State Mike PompeoMichael (Mike) Richard PompeoTrump’s Hail Mary passes won’t get him in the end zone The Anglosphere: The great power alliance right under Washington’s nose Trump silence on Nagorno-Karabakh weighs on Armenian-American voters MORE on Tuesday called on Azerbaijan and Armenia to respect a ceasefire agreement and condemned the targeting of civilians on both sides of a weeks-long conflict that was sparked by fighting along the border of the contested territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.

“The United States calls on Azerbaijan and Armenia to implement their commitments to a ceasefire as agreed and cease targeting civilian areas, such as Ganja and Stepanakert,” Pompeo said in a tweet. “We deplore the loss of human life and remain committed to a peaceful settlement.”

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Pompeo’s tweet follows a statement by the co-chairs of the Minsk Group – Russia, France and the U.S. – who on Tuesday called for the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia to meet the full obligations of the ceasefire mediated in Moscow over the weekend “in order to prevent catastrophic consequences for the region.”

Azerbaijan and Armenia have traded accusations of targeting civilian areas over the past two weeks of fighting, which has impacted civilian areas and extended beyond the borders of the contested territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, a majority-ethnic Armenian enclave that is supported by Armenia but is within sovereign Azerbaijan.

Armenia’s foreign ministry has said Azerbaijan has consistently shelled the majority enclaves of Nagorno-Karabakh’s capital city Stepanakert, among other areas, resulting in civilian casualties. 

Meanwhile, the Azeri foreign ministry said that 10 civilians were killed, and “many more injured, including children” in shelling by Armenian forces on Ganja, Azerbaijan’s second largest city, on October 11.

The death toll amid the fighting is believed to be about 600, including military and civilian deaths, The Associated Press reported on Tuesday. A Russian-mediated ceasefire over the weekend fell apart as both Armenia and Azerbaijan accused the other of violating the agreement minutes after it was expected to take effect.

Stocks opened lower on Tuesday as talks over a fifth COVID-19 relief package remained in limbo.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 100 points, or 0.3 percent, and the S&P 500 was down 7 points, or 0.2 percent.

The fate of a potential multitrillion-dollar fiscal injection into the economy has wobbled in recent weeks as President TrumpDonald John TrumpTwo ethics groups call on House to begin impeachment inquiry against Barr Trump relishes return to large rallies following COVID-19 diagnosis McGrath: McConnell ‘can’t get it done’ on COVID-19 relief MORE has seesawed from ending the talks to boasting that he wants even more spending than Democrats.

One of the main points of contention in the negotiations has been the Democrats’ insistence that the price tag not dip below $2 trillion after originally pushing for $3.4 trillion. Republican negotiators increased their offer from $1 trillion to $1.8 trillion, but Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiTwo ethics groups call on House to begin impeachment inquiry against Barr McGrath: McConnell ‘can’t get it done’ on COVID-19 relief On The Money: Trump faces unusual barrier to COVID-19 aid in GOP allies | Advocates plead for housing aid as eviction cliff looms MORE (D-Calif.) said that other provisions of the bill remained inadequate, specifically on a strategy to fight COVID-19.

GOP senators, who were only able to agree on a $300 billion bill, have all but dismissed the talks, raising further questions as to whether the upper chamber would even consider passing a deal should the White House and Democrats agree to one.

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Scientists have confirmed the first case of coronavirus reinfection in the United States: a 25-year-old Nevada man whose second round of the virus was more severe than the first. 

The findings were published Monday in the medical journal The Lancet.

The man, who remains unnamed, first tested positive in April before recovering and testing negative in May. Then in June, he tested positive for the virus again, developing symptoms of COVID-19 a second time. 

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According to the case study, his second infection was more severe than the first, with symptoms including fever, cough and dizziness. 

The researchers sequenced the RNA from both virus samples and found they were two different strains, making it a true reinfection.

Scientists have not concluded why someone might contract the virus twice or if some people are more predisposed to reinfection. The Nevada case marks the fifth case globally of reinfection, and scientists say so far that such instances are rare.

Yale University immunobiology professor Akiko Iwasaki told NPR a second positive test could happen for a number of reasons, such as being exposed at higher levels to the virus or an immune response making the virus seem worse rather than better the second time around.

Generally, researchers are finding that people who get COVID-19 develop a healthy immune response, but it’s unknown how long it lasts. 

The case study was first sent to The Lancet in August, but it was officially published and the case was confirmed as the first U.S. reinfection this week.  

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