By James Samson
\nLifeZette<\/p>\n
Earlier this week, we reported<\/a> that Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) had attacked Dr. Anthony Fauci for allegedly misleading Americans about masks and herd immunity related to the coronavirus pandemic. Now, Rubio is doubling down, saying that he found it \u201cappalling\u201d that Fauci had mislead the public with the intent to \u201cmanipulate their behavior.\u201d<\/p>\n Rubio initially let loose on Fauci on Twitter after the infections disease expert admitted to the New York Times<\/a>\u00a0that he had purposely mislead Americans about how many would need to be vaccinated for herd immunity to be achieved. Rubio has since fired back in an op-ed published by Fox News<\/a> in which he slammed the media for ignoring Fauci\u2019s admission before laying out exactly what he had done.<\/p>\n \u201cThe story is straightforward,\u201d the Florida senator wrote. \u2018For most of this year, Dr. Fauci and other scientists in our public health establishment have been telling Americans that about 60 to 70 percent of the nation would need a vaccine in order for us to reach herd immunity and make the coronavirus a non-issue.<\/p>\n \u201cBut, speaking with The New York Times, Dr. Fauci admitted that he believes the real number is in fact significantly higher \u2014 perhaps 75 to 90 percent \u2014 and he declined to be forthright because he felt the country wasn\u2019t ready to hear it,\u201d he added. \u201cOnly now did he say that he feels he has the freedom to \u2018nudge this up a bit\u2019 without discouraging the nation.\u201d<\/p>\n