Dr. Fauci Says He Will Step Down in 2024, Regardless of Who Is President

Dr. Anthony Fauci said he will likely step down from his leadership positions by 2024 — regardless of who ends up in the White House.

The country’s leading infectious disease expert made the announcement during an interview with Neil Cavuto on Wednesday when the Fox News anchor asked if he would continue serving in government if former President Donald Trump were reelected.

“Well, I’m not going to get involved in any politics about who is or is not going in the White House,” the doctor said.

“By the way, by the time that happens, I think I won’t be around, no matter who the president is,” he added.

Fauci currently serves both as Chief Medical Advisor to the President and the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases [NIAID].

Cavuto asked him if that means he is “done.”

“No, I’m not done yet,” he responded, chuckling. “But you’re talking about a few years from now. And I don’t foresee that I will be doing this a few years from now.”

 “So, no matter who is president,” Cavuto asked, “whether it’s Joe Biden getting reelected or someone else, Donald Trump or anyone else, you would not continue?” 

“That’s exactly correct,” Fauci said. “I have been doing this now for 38 years. It will be over 40 years if I wait that long.”  

The 81-year-old infectious disease expert was appointed as director of NIAID in 1984, according to his biography on the agency’s website. He has advised seven presidents — going all the way back to Ronald Reagan — on HIV/AIDS and many other domestic and global health issues.

Fauci was the leading face of the United States’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic for the Trump and Biden administrations since the virus broke out in March 2020. 

Last month, Fauci indicated that he would not stay as Chief Medical Advisor to the President — a position established by the Trump administration in 2019 — if Trump were reelected, after having frequently bumped heads with the 45th president in the first year of the pandemic.

“If Trump were to return to the White House as president, and COVID is still a threat or there is some other public health emergency, would you have confidence in his ability — would you have confidence in his ability to deal with a pandemic of this nature?” CNN host Jim Acosta asked Fauci on May 16. “Would you want to stay on in your post?”

“Well, no to the second question,” Fauci replied with a laugh. “The first question, if you look at the history of what the [COVID-19] response was during the [Trump] administration, I think at best you could say it wasn’t optimal.”