Look Over There: A Screwworm! CNN Pundit Tries To Distract From Fauci Scandal

CNN This Morning 7-29-26

Somewhere, James Carville is smiling.

The Ragin' Cajun would surely approve of Dem strategist Antjuan Seawright's attempt on today's CNN This Morning to distract from the Fauci scandal and the Senate committee hearing regarding it that Rand Paul is heading today.

Seawright twice claimed that people should forget about Fauci and focus instead on . . . screwworms. 

Screwworms: scarier than squirrels!

Substitute host Erica Hill described the 1,100-page Fauci diary dump as “a little choose-your-own-adventure, if you will, depending on what you are looking for in the diaries of Dr. Fauci . . . A little bit of something in here for everybody.” 

Hill left no doubt as to what "little bit" she was "looking for”— something flattering to Fauci and casting President Trump in a negative light. 

From all the 1,100 diary pages, Hill highlighted just one entry, that from March 2020 in which Fauci boasted: 

"We met with POTUS in the living quarters, not the Oval, for about an hour. I led the discussion since the POTUS kept referring to me. It was a disturbingly rambling discussion. He kept talking about TV ratings, and HC, and influenza and virtually everything else as I was trying to keep him on track."

Such a hero, that Fauci--if he does say so himself--keeping the supposedly rambling Trump on track!

Seawright then launched his distraction campaign. After briefly citing praise for Fauci from Trump’s former surgeon general, he complained that today’s hearing would be mere “political theater.” 

What really “burns my biscuits,” said the South Carolinian, is the lack of focus on current problems:

“There’s no interest in the fact that you have the screwworms sending everyone on the run . . and there’s no sense of accountability in that regard.”
 

Seawright renewed the screwworm pivot later when conservative Rob Bluey, an MRC alum and head of the Daily Signal, pressed the point that Congress has a duty to oversee a former $400,000-a-year government employee who, Bluey said, “lied to the American people repeatedly about the origin of COVID.”

Seawright interrupted: “But Rob, but Rob, but Rob. Respectfully, how do you know that?”

Bluey shot back: "Because it's in the diary!"

Seawright then circled back to his preferred topic: “So where’s the accountability for the screwworm? Screwworm."

Seawright tried one last deflection: 

"Remind me who was in charge when we were going through the COVID-19 pandemic, because I think sometimes that gets lost in the conversation. Who was the president?" 
 

In response, Bluey unleashed the line o' the day: 

“Apparently, Anthony Fauci thought he was!”
 

Seawright’s repeated insistence that Americans should focus on screwworms rather than Fauci’s record was a textbook attempt to change the subject. The hearing is about accountability for decisions made at the highest levels of the federal government during a national crisis. 

Pretending the only accountability that matters is today’s is the oldest trick in the book.

Here's the transcript.

CNN This Morning
7/29/26
6:39 am EDT

ERICA HILL: Also happening on the Hill today, just about two hours from now, Dr. Anthony Fauci will head to Capitol Hill where he's set to face a grilling by the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee. That committee is led by Senator Rand Paul, who has butted heads with Fauci in past hearings over his role leading the nation's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In the days leading up to this hearing, later this morning, the committee published 1,100 pages from Fauci's personal diary, detailing everything from high level White House pandemic meetings to his newfound fame and press attention. Fauci isn't appearing voluntarily after Senator Paul previously called for the doctor to be thrown in jail.

RAND PAUL: I would just, just suggest that he tell the truth. And if he tells the truth, he has no liability. But I would suggest that he testify because, because he's protected by the pardon, there's no real constitutional reason for him not to testify.

HILL: The Group Chat is back with us. I will note, there is a lot in here, as I noted, more than 1,100 pages. It's a little choose-your-own-adventure, if you will, depending on what you are looking for in the diaries of Dr. Fauci. 

Here is one thing that he wrote about a meeting in March of 2020, writing, "We met with POTUS in the living quarters, not the Oval, for about an hour. I led the discussion since the POTUS kept referring to me. It was a disturbingly rambling discussion. He kept talking about TV ratings, and HC, and influenza and virtually everything else as I was tryin to keep him on track. With the help of the VP, we finally got him to agree to a travel advisory, not a quarantine." 

As I noted, there is a little bit of something in here for everybody. We know it's going to be contentious with Rand Paul, but how are Democrats, do you think, going to approach this hearing today, Antjuan?

ANTJUAN SEAWRIGHT: First of all, you had Trump's former Surgeon General, I think as late as this morning, come out and praise Dr. Fauci, and called him, basically, a trusted and good public servant. 

But I think what's frustrating and what burns my biscuits the most is you have this political theater that will happen in the United States Senate today, with Senator Rand Paul.

But there's no interest in the fact that you have the screwworms sending everyone on the run, the fact that you see recall after recall and foods that basic everyday Americans are afraid to even deal with, and all the challenges that came along, that come along with this current administration. And there's no sense of accountability in that regard. 

I think that is what the American people focus on. Not in retrospect, but they're focused on right now in front of them, and right now in front of them are the challenges because of the people who are in charge of our government, but yet there's no accountability from the legislative standpoint. 

And so the theater is just gonna be political theater, for today, and I think the American people have grown numb to some of that.

HILL: And then you think people move on. Rob does not feel that way.

ROB BLUEY: Yeah, no. You can probably tell that I don't. I mean, I think that there will be fireworks today. I agree with you on that point But it's the role of Congress, in this case, Senator Rand Paul, to have oversight and hold this, this government employee, former government employee, who was paid $400,000 a year with our tax dollars, and who lied to the American people repeatedly about the origin of COVID. I mean, he talked about it.

SEAWRIGHT: But Rob, but Rob, but Rob. Respectfully, how do you know that? And, and I— We agree --

BLUEY: -- Because it's in the diary! 

SEAWRIGHT: Well, here's what we agree on. We agree that the, the legislative branch is supposed to have oversight and accountability to the executive branch. We agree with that. 

So where's the accountability for the screwworm? Screwworm. Where's accountability for all these recalls we see every single day and the lack thereof from the current leaders of our government? 

You, you don't see that, but you want to focus on someone who's no longer in the government.

Remind me who was in charge when we were going through the COVID-19 pandemic, because I think sometimes that gets lost in the conversation. Who was the president? 

BLUEY: Apparently, Anthony Fauci thought he was.