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White House Eyes Ouster of Alex Azar as Health Secretary: Reports

Administration officials were reportedly rankled by reports that Azar gave Trump early warnings about coronavirus that were not heeded.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar has a bullseye on his back. The Wall Street Journal and Politico reported on Saturday evening that Trump administration officials are discussing whether to boot him in the latest fallout from the coronavirus crisis. The White House denied the reports, which cited multiple unnamed sources, and an HHS spokesperson told the Journal: “Secretary Azar is busy responding to a global, public health crisis and doesn’t have time for palace intrigue.”

Administration officials are said to have been rankled by reports that Azar warned Trump in January that an urgent response to the spreading coronavirus was needed but was ignored—which both Trump and Azar denied. Politico reports that the White House thinks Azar also botched the demotion of vaccine expert Dr. Rick Bright, who has now filed a whistleblower complaint.