On "Stop Abusing the Help"

8-5-2026

On Stop Abusing the Help!: Years ago, during a particularly contentious meeting between a top organization’s leader and a subordinate, a wise participant intervened and said “okay, it’s time to stop abusing the help”. The renewed right-wing furor over Anthony Fauci, reminded me of that meeting. Fauci was the thirty-eight year Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). He served seven Presidents from both Party’s. The exact definition of a public servant, employed by us, to do the work of our government. The Rand Paul Committee set on him like vultures on a dead carcass.

If we care to look at the facts (there I go spoiling the party again) “Employee Fauci” violated no workplace rule, committed no dischargeable offence and certainly should not be subjected to calls for his imprisonment. In fact, if we were decent “employers”, we would be awarding him our highest civilian honors. In the face of a worldwide medical crisis, with enormous human and economic consequences, Anthony Fauci did his job. He offered his best scientific and medical advice. His credentials to do that are substantial. He refused to be bullied by a portion of our citizenry that was more concerned about their personal inconvenience than the consequences of a deadly pandemic. We used to respect and honor those who showed that kind of courage.

What has made employee Fauci the center of a political firestorm is that he was working for political leadership that doesn’t have the guts to lead. At a moment in the nation’s history, that called for our leaders to level with the American people about the crisis we faced and the consequences of doing nothing, our leadership chickened out. Rather than educate and explain why extreme measures were needed, that leadership joined the mob of conspiracy mongers, those tied to an unrealistic view of personal freedom and those who simply don’t care about anyone but themselves. Fauci was the light in that darkness. A light that those who joined the mob desperately need to snuff out.

This is “the Apprentice” style of governance. In the reality TV show, it was never the boss’s fault. It was always some failing of an employee. The answer was always to say, “your fired”! In this version of leadership, employees exist to take the heat for the boss, who is above reproach. The COVID pandemic was a public governance issue. Many in this nation have gotten confused about the difference between the responsibilities and actions of a for-profit businessperson and an elected representative of the people.

This isn’t to say that people didn’t have legitimate questions about how they personally wanted to deal with COVID. The vaccine was brand new and its long-term effects not well known. The curtailment of economic activity was an extreme measure and put lots of people in a bind. Early on there were questions about how the virus got loose and created a worldwide death threat.

We now know a whole lot more. We know that it is scientifically impossible that our support for the Chinese lab’s other work, caused the release of COVID. We know that the vaccine was continuously improved, and deaths because of taking it, are far to the right of a decimal point. We know that where public places (schools, businesses, social gatherings, etc.) were curtailed, many more people stayed healthy or didn’t die. We know that the use of masks was most effective when we used the higher-grade ones and when worn properly. “Herd Immunity” doesn’t work on a fast adapter like COVID. Fauci’s advice saved lives.

There are two glaring lies that were used to foment a blame-game. First was that the federal government was requiring the vaccine in the general economy. This was never the case. There were some masking requirements in public spaces, and guidance for workplace precautions. We faced an airborne aggressive virus where personal preferences needed to be weighed against the general health of the nation. The most restrictive protections were enacted at the State level and by employers. Secondly, Fauci provided guidance, based on the evolving medical/scientific understanding of the virus. He worked in concert with a worldwide effort to stop and then reverse the spread of the disease. Trump was the President and he did not follow Fauci’s recommendations until the death toll mounted and doing nothing became a political liability. If Trump felt Fauci’s advice was wrong, he should have continued to ignore it. Blaming an underling to avoid the responsibilities of elected office is the ultimate abdication of a leader’s responsibilities.

Anthony Fauci, and every other person we the public employ, deserves to be treated fairly and given due process. What Senator Rand Paul and others are proposing is that anyone can make an unsupported allegation and if they can get enough people to believe their assertions, that’s a basis to jail the accused employee. How many Americans are willing to jettison our rule of law for this kind of frontier justice? How many want mob rule to determine their fate?

In the same way that a business prospers by the positive environment created for its workers, a nation prospers by the fair and positive way it treats its public servants. We are not going to get top talent and dedicated people to work for us, if we treat them like dogshit. The current Administration, opportunistic publicity hounds like Rand Paul and their ilk are cheering on the replacement of competent people with bobbleheads. The treatment of Dr. Fauci is but one example. Because we the public have yet to insist on being model employers, we are already paying a high price both in economic costs and human suffering. It’s time to stop abusing the help.

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