Was Dr. Birx "threatened" by Former Guy to remain silent about risks of COVID deaths?

Hundreds of thousands of COVID deaths could have been prevented!

Trump had downplayed the outbreak in its early stages.

Dr. Deborah Leah Birx is an American physician and diplomat who served as the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator under #FormerGuy Donald Trump from 2020 to 2021.

Dr. Birx said that, while the initial surge in March last year (2020) caught health officials off guard, better messaging and coordination from the government could have reduced the number of #TrumpVirus deaths later.

Dr. Deborah Birx recalls 'very difficult' call with Trump, says hundreds of thousands of COVID deaths were preventable.

"I look at it this way: The first time, we have an excuse," Birx said about the initial surge of deaths. "All of the rest of them, in my mind, could have been mitigated or decreased substantially."

400,000 preventable deaths.  By Allan Smith NBC News

Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator in the Trump administration, described an "uncomfortable" call with #FormerGuy Donald Trump after an interview with CNN, in August in which she discussed the threat posed by Covid-19.

"Well, I think you've heard other conversations that people have posted with the former president," Birx said as part of a CNN documentary, "Covid War: The Pandemic Doctors Speak Out," which is airing in full on Sunday evening. "I would say it was even more direct than what people have heard. It was very uncomfortable, very direct and very difficult to hear."

In the segment, which CNN released Sunday, Birx was asked whether she was threatened in the call?

"I would say it was a very uncomfortable conversation," she said.

Was Dr. Birx threatened by Trump to keep silent about the high risks of coronavirus deaths? She reported an "uncomfortable conversation" with Trump.

Within weeks of Covid-19 shutdown measures' being put in place, Trump, who would later contract the virus and be hospitalized, began pushing for cities and states to reopen. He also pitched unproven treatments for the virus and questioned the need to wear face coverings.

Birx, who has spoken out about her experience on Trump's coronavirus task force repeatedly in recent months, has taken heat for not having been more critical. 

Last March, she praised Trump for being "so attentive to the scientific literature and the details and the data" about the outbreak.

Such past commentary led to backlash over her latest remarks.

"The malicious incompetence that resulted in hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths starts at the top, with the former president and his enablers," Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., tweeted. "And who was one of his enablers? Dr. Birx, who was afraid to challenge his unscientific rhetoric and wrongfully praised him."

She was also criticized last year for traveling during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend after having warned Americans to avoid travel and gatherings with people outside their immediate households

In the segment, which CNN released, Birx was asked whether she was threatened in the call.

"I would say it was a very uncomfortable conversation," she said.

In a clip, released earlier by CNN, Birx said the Trump administration could have prevented hundreds of thousands of Covid-19 deaths had it acted more forcefully to mitigate the pandemic.

"I look at it this way: The first time, we have an excuse. There were about 100,000 deaths that came from that original surge," Birx said. "All of the rest of them, in my mind, could have been mitigated or decreased substantially."

The virus has killed more than 551,000 people in the U.S., according to NBC News' tracker. The initial spring wave was followed by surges over the summer and the winter, which proved to be the deadliest stretch.

Within weeks of Covid-19 shutdown measures' being put in place, Trump, who would later contract the virus and be hospitalized, began pushing for cities and states to reopen. He also pitched unproven treatments for the virus (snake oil, bleach and hydroxychloroquine!) and questioned the need to wear face coverings.

Birx, who has spoken out about her experience on Trump's coronavirus task force repeatedly in recent months, has taken heat for not having been more critical. Last March, she praised Trump for being "so attentive to the scientific literature and the details and the data" about the outbreak.

Such past commentary led to backlash over her latest remarks.

"The malicious incompetence that resulted in hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths starts at the top, with the former president and his enablers," Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., tweeted. "And who was one of his enablers? Dr. Birx, who was afraid to challenge his unscientific rhetoric and wrongfully praised him."

Dr. Birx was also criticized last year for traveling during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend after having warned Americans to avoid travel and gatherings with people outside their immediate households.

Untruths and pressure: Dr. Birx was one of several former Trump officials to detail dysfunction, infighting, and an aversion to the truth they said hindered the government and public response to the coronavirus pandemic.