FAUCI DIARY ARCHIVE — Friday, December 16, 2005
https://faucisdiary.com/diary/2005-12-16

Text below is verbatim from the released PDFs, with the original line breaks.
==============================================================================

DIARY ENTRY — Friday, December 16, 2005
Source: Diary Prequel, pp. 139–140 of 2026.07.27_Diary-Prequel-.pdf
Words: 359
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Paradoxically, mostly favorable responses to the WSJ article. Most
people interpreted it as indicating that I was a powerful player. Publicity dying down
about bird flu around holidays. MOL went on the first of the State trips to Minnesota.
With the help of Rich McKeown, I got out of the trip. Julie Gerberding went and feels as
I do that these series of trips will be a waste of time for us.
        Article came out in WSJ by Sarah Lueck on Stewart Simonson with major quote
by me defending him. It was a fair article and will likely reverse the trend of bad press
that he has been getting as being the “Michael Brown of Public Health preparedness”.
        Went to the VP’s mansion for a Christmas Party on Dec. 15 and then went to
Lessons and Carols at the National Cathedral right afterwards. Took Stewart Simonson
and his parents (who are in town for the holidays).

Dec. 16-31, 2005 – Reasonably calm. Still doing press regularly related to pandemic flu.
On Dec. 27, 28, 29 did Today Show, Good Morning America, and CNN “The Situation
Room”, respectively. Bush popularity polls going up slightly after a terrible year related
to Iraq, prison abuses, Valerie Plume leak (Scooter Libby, Karl Rove), Katrina, etc.
POTUS speaking more to the press and admitting more that certain things have not gone
well. Am still trying to be low profile in requirement to travel with MOL on his 50 State
tour.

Dec. 27-28, 2005 – Drove up to NYC with Chris and the girls to do Christmas
sightseeing and to visit my father who does not travel down to DC/VA for the holidays
the way he used to do years ago. Had a great time. Went to Bryant Park around 42nd
Street and 5 Avenue (near NY Public Library and saw the Kenneth Cole tented exhibit in

the Park. It was a series of photos and plastic molds of foot imprints of people who had
devoted themselves to fighting the AIDS epidemic. My footprint was up there along with
Angelina Joli, Brad Pitt, Whoopie Goldberg, Larry Kramer, Bono and a large number of
other notables.