Anthony Fauci Is the Doctor at the Center of the Coronavirus Pandemic

With all of the fear surrounding the coronavirus pandemic in the world, many in the United States are finding some sort of relief from Dr. Anthony Fauci. The immunologist is an employee of the National Institutes of Health and he is the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). Dr. Fauci has been at the center of much of the conversation surrounding the virus including how to potentially stop it and how many people will likely be infected in the coming weeks. 

Because Dr. Fauci has spoken out about the way President Trump and his administration has been handling the severity of the coronavirus, many are wondering whether the doctor has a public political affiliation (and some wish that he himself would run for office).

What is Dr. Fauci's political affiliation? Read on to find out if the doctor has publicly divulged his political leanings in the past, and to learn more about his background. 

Because Dr. Fauci has lightly criticized the manner in which President Trump spoke about the severity of the coronavirus in its earlier days, many wondered if the revered immunologist is a registered Democrat. 

"You should never destroy your own credibility," he told POLITICO on March 13. "And you don't want to go to war with a president. But you got to walk the fine balance of making sure you continue to tell the truth."

He later said that the coronavirus was going to become a worse issue before it could get better.

"I don't think that we are going to get out of this completely unscathed. I think that this is going to be one of those things we look back on and say boy, that was bad," he said. 

During his tenure, he's won support and praise from both Republican and Democratic politicians, especially during the coronavirus pandemic.

In his more than 30 years at NIH, Dr. Fauci has worked under six different presidents, who were both Democrats and Republicans, but the doctor has never publicly confirmed which political party he identifies with. 

Though his political identity is unknown, the public is fairly united in their support for the doctor for his ability to concisely (and in layman's terms) discuss what the United States is facing when it comes to the coronavirus pandemic.

Born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y. to Italian American parents, Dr. Fauci grew up around medicine. His parents, Eugenia and Stephen Fauci, both worked at a pharmacy (Eugenia worked at the register while Stephen was a pharmacist). He attended the prestigious Regis High School in Manhattan, and he then attended the College of the Holy Cross. Dr. Fauci received his medical degree at Cornell University. 

He joined NIH in 1968 and NIAID two years later. He became the director of NIAID in 1984. 

The 79-year-old has been instrumental in the study of HIV/AIDS in the '80s, the 2001 anthrax scare, Ebola, and Zika. 

On a personal note, Dr. Fauci has been married to Dr. Christine Grady since 1985 and the two share three adult daughters together: Alison, Megan, and Jennifer.

Dr. Grady is a nurse, bioethicist, and head of the Department of Bioethics at NIH. She received two degrees from Georgetown University, and one from Boston College. 

While the world deals with all of the uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus, Dr. Fauci has become the voice of reason.