Now:

"We, the scientists, knew what to do for the pandemic response."

Then:

"[The CDC] does not recommend that people who are well wear a facemask to protect themselves from respiratory diseases, including COVID-19." -CDC.

"What's important for America to understand is that this is going to be like a bad flu season, that's what we're predicting." "A surgical mask does not protect you from respiratory virus - it has leaks all around it." -US Surgeon General Jerome Adams, Mar 2020. Source1 Source2

"The virus itself is so small that it can penetrate the [surgical] mask, so it literally does nothing for you.” -Erin Sorrell, Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Georgetown University, Feb 2020 Source

"There's no reason to be walking around with a mask." Anthony Fauci, Mar 2020