Dr Anthony S. Fauci, the US government’s top infectious disease expert, took issue on Sunday with a decision by the Trump campaign to feature him in an ad without his consent and said it had misrepresented his comments.

“I was totally surprised,” Dr Fauci said. “The use of my name and my words by the GOP campaign was done without my permission, and the actual words themselves were taken out of context, based on something that I said months ago.”

The spot seeks to use Trump’s illness with Covid-19 and apparent recovery to improve the negative image many Americans have of his handling of the coronavirus.