White House press secretary Jen Psaki said National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) director Anthony Fauci is an “undeniable asset” amid the COVID-19 pandemic, coming after thousands of emails were released this week that provided criticism that he knew more than he let on. “He’s been an undeniable asset in our country’s pandemic response,” Psaki told reporters on Thursday during a press briefing at the White House. Psaki declined to speak about several of Fauci’s emails when asked. “It’s obviously not that advantageous for me to relitigate the substance of emails from 17 months ago,” she told reporters. The emails were obtained by several news outlets via a Freedom of Information Act request this week. In one email that is now the source of criticism, Fauci wrote about protective masks. “Masks are really for infected people to prevent them from spreading infection to people who are not infected rather than protecting …