Rick Scott Slams Fauci After Official Says Vaccinated Can Celebrate the Holidays: ‘We Don’t Need’ His Permission

Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), dismissed suggestions that Dr. Anthony Fauci can give or take away permission for Americans to celebrate the holidays with their families, calling it “insane that the government thinks it can tell people how to live.”

“We don’t need Fauci’s permission to celebrate the holidays with family. People are smart. They know how to make decisions that best protect their loved ones. It’s insane that the government thinks it can tell people how to live,” Scott said in response to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases chief’s recent remarks:

We don't need Fauci's permission to celebrate the holidays with family. People are smart. They know how to make decisions that best protect their loved ones. It's insane that the government thinks it can tell people how to live. https://t.co/hQZno60y4s

— Rick Scott (@SenRickScott) October 18, 2021

The senator’s remark follows Fauci’s appearance on ABC’s This Week, in which he effectively gave vaccinated individuals permission to celebrate the upcoming holidays including Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

“I believe strongly that particularly in the vaccinated people if you are vaccinated, and your family members are vaccinated, those who are eligible, that is obviously very young children and not yet eligible, that you can enjoy the holidays,” he told anchor Martha Raddatz.

“You can enjoy Halloween, trick-or-treating, and certainly Thanksgiving with your family and Christmas with your family,” he continued, using the holidays as another pitch for Americans to get vaccinated.

“When you do that [get vaccinated], there’s no reason at all why you can’t enjoy the holidays in a family way, the way we’ve traditionally done it all along,” he added.

Fauci came under fire this month after initially stating that it was “too soon to tell” if Americans would be able to gather for the holidays. He later claimed his remarks were taken “completely out of context.” Yet, he still maintains that his explicit permission extends primarily to the vaccinated.