Power must truly corrupt and make people think they can get away with anything (although I’d still like to be given the chance to test my mettle against its siren call). Today’s case study: Dr. Jay Varma served as then-NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio’s “Covid czar” from April 2020 to May 2021, and was a part of the core team who planned NYC’s vaccine rollout. So his tenure covered the bleakest days of Covid when we were on strict lockdown until the vaccines were available to offer a bridge back to normality. As a public health official amid a once in a century pandemic, you would expect Dr. Varma to model the safety precautions/behaviors (like masking and social distancing) that he was asking of the Big Apple’s citizenry, no? Yeah, well guess who was just outed as having attended two parties during that time? Dr. Varma no longer works for the city, but on Monday he was sacked from his current pharmaceutical job
The board of directors at SIGA Technologies terminated Dr. Jay Varma effective immediately “other than for cause,” according to a filing Monday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Varma was the company’s executive vice president and chief medical officer, the filing says. He was also on its board of directors.
A company spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday. A spokesman for Varma would not comment.
The policies adopted in New York City while Varma was former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s senior public health adviser and an architect of the city’s vaccine strategy attracted national attention after Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving was banned from playing basketball in New York City when he refused to get vaccinated against Covid-19.
Varma acknowledged the prohibited gatherings after a conservative podcaster posted video last week of what appeared to be hidden camera recordings that showed Varma describing them.
In a previous statement released by his spokesman, Varma did not dispute the authenticity of the videos but said they were secretly recorded, “spliced, diced and taken out of context.” The spokesman would not say how they were taken out of context.
In the recordings, Varma can be heard describing a “sex party” that he attended at a hotel with his wife and eight to 10 other people in August 2020, as well as an indoor dance bash in July 2021 attended by more than 200 people.
Varma can be heard describing the first event in the recordings as “just being naked with friends.”
At the time of the second event, New York state had raised the limit on outdoor gatherings from 200 to 500 people. Varma’s spokesman previously said that he was a part-time City Hall consultant at the time and that all participants were vaccinated.
“I served in City Hall between April 2020 – May 2021,” Varma said in the statement. “During that time, I participated in two private gatherings. I take responsibility for not using the best judgment at the time.”
For the love of Lady Liberty, where do we start?! I love (and by “love” I mean am eye rolling) that the most responsibility Dr. Varma could muster in his statement of taking responsibility is “for not using the best judgment.” Dude can’t even directly say he used bad judgment. Moving on to the dance party in July 2021, I realize I’m a homebody, but what indoor dance bashes are going on under my nose in this city? With 200+ people no less! I’d like to know the venue, the playlist, and all dance genres the revelers partook in. You know, as part of public record and apology to NYC. But of course the biggie is the August 2020 sex party. I have several questions. How do you go about putting feelers out there to gauge who else is down for an orgy in the middle of lockdown? Whilst also keeping it on the down-low because you’re telling the rest of New York to exhibit the exact opposite behavior? Who came up with this brilliant idea? No really, how severe do personal circumstances need to be that putting together an orgy during a deadly health crisis is the only way forward? WHAT HOTEL? And not for nothing, but is it not an extra layer of dumb that Dr. Varma was outed not by video recordings of either party, but by sound recordings of him bragging about them?
Friendly reminder: now is a great time to get your Covid and Flu shots! I just got mine yesterday!
Screenshots from YouTube/Fox 5 Good Day New York and CBS New York