(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump has ended the federal security detail for Dr. Anthony Fauci, the infectious disease expert who advised him on the COVID-19 pandemic, a person familiar with the matter said Friday.
Fauci is the latest in a string of former Trump aides-turned-critics to see their federal protection canceled despite ongoing threats to their lives.
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Speaking to reporters in North Carolina on Friday, Trump said he wouldn’t feel any responsibility if harm befell the former government officials. A person familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive security issues, told The Associated Press that Fauci’s federal security detail was ended on Thursday and that he has since hired private security.
When asked about Fauci and former national security adviser John Bolton, Trump said, “They all made a lot of money. They can hire their own security, too.”
“I think when you work for the government, at some point, your security detail comes off and you know you can’t have it forever,” said Trump. “So I think it’s very standard.”
The president said he would bear no responsibility should something happen to Fauci or Bolton.
“I think that certainly, I would not take responsibility,” Trump said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
