Obama privately called Trump a 'hopeless idiot,' Donald Jr a 'moron' in Fauci diary entry

WASHINGTON, DC: Former President Barack Obama's private criticism of President Donald Trump and Donald Trump Jr during the COVID-19 pandemic has surfaced in newly released diary entries kept by former NIH Director Dr Anthony Fauci.

The entries, released by Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), detail a November 2021 phone call in which Obama expressed support for Fauci as the infectious disease expert faced political backlash over the federal pandemic response.

Fauci diary details Obama's private remarks during 2021 phone call

According to a November 2021 diary entry, Fauci told Obama about what he described as "crazy things that the far-right Republicans were doing," including merchandise sold by Donald Trump Jr featuring the slogan "Fauci Kills Puppies."

The merchandise referred to claims that the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases funded research involving beagle puppies. The controversy centered on a study published in 'PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases' examining sand fly transmission, which later received a correction from the journal in October 2021.

Fauci wrote that Obama reacted sharply after hearing about the merchandise. "Obama said that Donald Trump junior is 'A f****** moron.' He apologized for using crude language but then went on to say that Donald Trump was a hopeless idiot who was a pathologic liar."

The diary entry also said Obama expressed disappointment that moderate Republicans were not publicly defending Fauci against what he viewed as false accusations.

"He was very upset that none of the moderate Republicans were actually speaking out on my behalf and were distancing themselves from all of this terrible slanderous behavior against me."

Fauci concluded the entry by describing the conversation as "an incredibly memorable phone call" that lasted about 25 minutes.

Fauci diary release renews scrutiny over pandemic response

The entries are part of more than 1,000 pages of Fauci's pandemic-era records released by Paul after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr said the documents were located on government servers.

Republicans have argued the records raise new questions about Fauci's public and private handling of the pandemic, while Fauci has repeatedly denied allegations of wrongdoing.

The White House also responded to the newly released diary entry. Addressing the reported remarks, spokesperson Davis Ingle said, "Barack Hussein Obama will go down as one of the most dishonest, divisive, and destructive Presidents in history."

Fauci also appeared before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee this week.

During the hearing, he denied all allegations against him and invoked the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times on the advice of his attorneys, arguing that his testimony could expose him to new legal risks despite receiving a presidential pardon from former President Joe Biden covering potential federal offenses committed between 2014 and January 2025.