The It's How Science Works! Fallacy

Since the start of the pandemic, this has come up often. Sometimes in the form of a meme, sometimes in comments on Twitter.
Ex. Dr. Fauci has changed his mind on the legitimacy of the claim that Sars-Cov-2 originated from a lab in Wuhan. Critics of Fauci say he should resign (or worse) for dishonesty and treason. Fauci's supporters say his change of opinion is not a problem, "it's just how science works!"
Now for a couple facts.
Fact 1: "It's how science works"
-Does not apply to political claims or opinions.
-Cannot be claimed when "the science" is not in fact fully developed into a theory (i.e. it's just conjectures) and the claimed scientific consensus is the result of a highly polarized, politicized climate. A climate loaded with rhetoric, and wherein dissenters and critics and skeptics, or even anyone asking critical questions, get labeled as conspiracy theorists, racists, and a threat to public safety.
Fact 2: Scientific theories do not get established in short periods of time. What's established first is conjecture, and scientists then make repeated attempts to falsify the conjecture. It takes years for the proper investigation, peer review, publication, and replication of scientific experiments for a scientific fact to be established. And then it can take many more years for these facts to either be backed up further or refined or revised or replaced altogether. Scientific facts are not established and then discarded in a matter of mere months. Any claim otherwise is dubious.
Takeaways:
1. A scientific consensus does not give anyone the right to dismiss or ridicule an opposing view and label the person with such view as idiotic or dangerous.
2. The scientific process does not excuse flip-flopping or inconsistent opinions on highly politicized matters.
3. Just as science and religion are separate, so too science and politics are separate.
4. Science does not include ignoring or discarding valid claims, without first undertaking sufficient inquiry.