<p>The White House on Monday said that talk of President Donald Trump wanting to fire the government's top medical specialist in the coronavirus crisis, Anthony Fauci, was "ridiculous."</p>.<p>Rumors that Fauci could get the axe -- as a vocal group of Trump's right-wing supporters wants -- accelerated on Sunday when the president retweeted a criticism of the doctor with the hashtag #FireFauci.</p>.<p>"This media chatter is ridiculous - President Trump is not firing Dr. Fauci," White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said in a statement.</p>.<p>"Dr. Fauci has been and remains a trusted advisor to President Trump."</p>.<p>Fauci is widely considered one of the most trusted faces in the Trump administration's fight against the pandemic. As a longtime expert in similar health crises, Fauci is winning plaudits for his no-nonsense and apolitical interviews with the media.</p>.<p>However, his consistent push for strict social distancing and shutting down of much economic activity has sparked resistance from Republicans who believe the COVID-19 crisis is overblown and worry that the paralyzed economy will hurt Trump's reelection chances.</p>.<p>Conspiracy theories spread widely on social media suggest that Fauci is even a Democratic plant.</p>.<p>Gidley said that the purpose of Trump's retweet was simply to defend himself against "media attempts to maliciously push a falsehood" about the government's alleged slow response to the pandemic.</p>.<p>"It was Democrats and the media who ignored Coronavirus," Gidley said. Trump, by contrast, took "bold decisive action to save American lives by cutting off travel from China and from Europe."</p>.<p>Gidley did not directly explain the president's decision to include the #FireFauci hashtag.</p>
<p>The White House on Monday said that talk of President Donald Trump wanting to fire the government's top medical specialist in the coronavirus crisis, Anthony Fauci, was "ridiculous."</p>.<p>Rumors that Fauci could get the axe -- as a vocal group of Trump's right-wing supporters wants -- accelerated on Sunday when the president retweeted a criticism of the doctor with the hashtag #FireFauci.</p>.<p>"This media chatter is ridiculous - President Trump is not firing Dr. Fauci," White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said in a statement.</p>.<p>"Dr. Fauci has been and remains a trusted advisor to President Trump."</p>.<p>Fauci is widely considered one of the most trusted faces in the Trump administration's fight against the pandemic. As a longtime expert in similar health crises, Fauci is winning plaudits for his no-nonsense and apolitical interviews with the media.</p>.<p>However, his consistent push for strict social distancing and shutting down of much economic activity has sparked resistance from Republicans who believe the COVID-19 crisis is overblown and worry that the paralyzed economy will hurt Trump's reelection chances.</p>.<p>Conspiracy theories spread widely on social media suggest that Fauci is even a Democratic plant.</p>.<p>Gidley said that the purpose of Trump's retweet was simply to defend himself against "media attempts to maliciously push a falsehood" about the government's alleged slow response to the pandemic.</p>.<p>"It was Democrats and the media who ignored Coronavirus," Gidley said. Trump, by contrast, took "bold decisive action to save American lives by cutting off travel from China and from Europe."</p>.<p>Gidley did not directly explain the president's decision to include the #FireFauci hashtag.</p>