Trump trashes Fauci and makes baseless coronavirus claims in campaign call

Referring to Fauci and other health officials as "idiots," Trump declared the country ready to move on from the health disaster, even as cases are again spiking and medical experts warn the worst may be yet to come.

have the biggest rallies I've ever had, and we have Covid," Trump said, phoning into a call with campaign staff from his namesake hotel in Las Vegas, where he spent two nights amid a western campaign swing.

Scott Atlas, a radiologist whose views on mask wearing and other mitigation practices are at odds with nearly every scientific opinion.

The dynamic has caused tensions among the government's health officials, including with Fauci, whose warnings about the virus Trump has bristled at for months.

"Fauci is a disaster.

CNN was given access to the call by a source.

Trump's attempt to shore up his campaign staff 15 days before Election Day came amid widespread worries among Republicans that his inability to hone a final message will have dire effects not only for his own race but for control of the US Senate.

Even as his anger was evident on the call, Trump sought to project optimism.

"This is the single best I have ever been in any campaign," Trump said regarding his reelection chances.

"Today is the best single day that I've felt on either campaign."

"We are going to win," he said "I wouldn't have said that three weeks ago."

After stories emerged about early campaign finger-pointing ahead of a potential loss, Trump insisted he was satisfied with the work his team is doing -- including his chief of staff Mark Meadows, who has been blamed internally for badly mismanaging Trump's Covid diagnosis and subsequent hospitalization.