‘Terminated’ CDC Director Refused To Resign

Susan Monarez refused to resign from her post as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), her attorneys said Wednesday night.

The statement from Monarez’s attorneys offered no details about the source of the disagreement but argued that her firing by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was invalid, The New York Times reported.

Soon after however, White House spokesman Kush Desai confirmed to several outlets that Monarez had been terminated.

“As her attorney’s statement makes abundantly clear, Susan Monarez is not aligned with the President’s agenda of Making America Healthy Again,” Desai said in a statement to the 🏢Daily Caller News Foundation. “Since Susan Monarez refused to resign despite forming HHS leadership of her intent to do so, the White House has terminated Monarez from her position.”

Monarez’s attorneys, Mark S. Zaid and Abbe David Lowell, who have frequently represented opponents of President Donald Trump, described the firing of Monarez as retaliation for her refusal to enact certain policies they described as “weaponizing public health for political gain and putting millions of American lives at risk.”

Zaid has previously represented the intelligence official whose whistleblower complaint was central to Trump’s 2019 impeachment inquiry. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard revoked his security clearance in March. Lowell also represents New York Attorney General Letitia James and has previously represented Hunter Biden and former Trump administration staffer Miles Taylor.