John Bright

In a tweet on Thursday, Trump calls Dr Rick Bright, former director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, a "disgruntled employee". Trump states that he had never met or heard about Bright and that Bright was neither liked or respected by people who he spoke to.

Bright had a filed a whistleblower complaint after he was removed from his position earlier this year. In an interview, Bright told the New York Times, “I am speaking out because to combat this deadly virus, science — not politics or cronyism — has to lead the way".

Doctor Rick Bright – immunologist, public health official former director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority – is about to testify before Congress, stating the US government and the Trump administration were ill-prepared for the Covid-19 pandemic. Bright stated in his written testimony that the US “missed early warning signals” and that he "faced hostility and marginalization from HHS officials" when warning the administration about shortages of medical supplies.

Bright also stated that "without clear planning and implementation of the steps that I and other experts have outlined, 2020 will be darkest winter in modern history".

Bright filed a whistleblower complaint after being removed from his position for criticising Trump's promotion of the drug chloroquine.