>>I dont buy this at all in respect to the masks. We might have been in the fog with respect to the effects etc. of the virus (maybe - depending on what Rand finds out). But there can be no fog in respect of whether surgical and cloth masks could provide any protection.

IMHO the key word wrt wearing any mask should be "properly" since no mask is effective if you are constantly touching it, or wearing it more than once without sterilizing. Cloth masks are particularly at fault since people often stuff them into pockets or bags and then re-wear as needed, which makes theoretical effectiveness irrelevant.

I'd prefer to see actual human study looking at people constantly touching and re-wearing versus proper use of cloth and other sorts of mask. Does stuff get through or not?

Ironically, mandated masking makes people more accustomed to masks so that like healthcare workers, people learn what works for them and don't need to constantly adjust. Maybe if they push these sorts of things harder, evidence-based resisters may be more inclined to cooperate.

>>Fauci has shown himself to be just another politician...

From his perspective, after decades in public service he sees a succession of temporary politicians causing wild direction swings every 3 or 6 years, sometimes trashing scientific endeavor that took years to set up and nurture- which is what Obama did to "gain of function" research, btw. This incentivizes a) moving sensitive activity to somewhere like China to insulate from political intransigence, or b) when Trump stops a grant, you've got money squirreled away to feed research you want by subversive means. Add to this that in Fauci's day you had to be academically in the stratosphere to become a physician compared to relative fumblers elected to power and as the decades go by a certain level of hubris might be anticipated.

I wonder whether term limits might be as valuable in public service as they are in politics, and for the same reason...

Rand is a problem for Fauci who can't look down his nose at Rand or bamboozle him on whether the Wuhan lab was funded or what "gain of function" means. Perhaps Fauci also is fearful that whoever leaked the emails will leak more stuff revealing how NIH dances to its own tune regardless of the political Trumpet band du jour. So brace yourself for more "Trump was right about the Deep State" memes as the poor US citizenry is subjected to another round of partisan crisis.

I don't think Fauci is perfect, but he has dedicated a lifetime to public service and while "the road to hell is paved with good intentions" they are still good intentions, even if they're undermined by unfortunate messaging or efforts to avoid democratic oversight.