- Confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States surged to nearly 1.4 million, with fatalities exceeding 80,000, in just over 100 days since the country reported its first case on Jan. 21;

- Critics have attributed the crisis partly to the White House's failure to act in a timely way, even as alarm bells were ringing from late December onward;

- While battling the unknown virus, the White House, critics say, has constantly diminished the role of scientists in its decision-making, ignoring their suggestions about enhancing testing capacity.

WASHINGTON, May 17  -- Having been blocked from testifying to a House committee examining the White House's controversial response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as being absent at the daily COVID-19 task force briefings for days, top U.S. infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci, along with three other medical experts on Tuesday testified remotely to the Senate, the Republican-controlled chamber of the Congress.

Before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Fauci rebuked the White House, but "even so, the totality of his testimony undermined talking points (President Donald) Trump has used to downplay the pandemic," commented U.S. media outlet Vox.

Washington's early neglect toward the virus, ill-preparedness, indifference to science and facts, and its recklessness of only serving political interests may partially explain why respected experts including Fauci preferred to speak less of the "absolute chaotic disaster," a harsh phrase used by former President Barack Obama to blast his successor's handling of the coronavirus.