A Senate committee voted Thursday to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress after he repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment during a subpoenaed hearing last week, setting up a possible criminal referral to the Department of Justice.
The Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee approved the resolution after a party-line debate over whether Fauci's refusal to answer questions warranted further action.
Committee Chairman Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said he plans to refer the contempt resolution to the Justice Department.
If the referral is made, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro will decide whether to pursue the case. Any prosecution would require a grand jury indictment.
The vote is the latest development in a yearslong dispute between Paul and Fauci over the federal government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the origins of the virus.
Fauci's attorney blasts contempt vote
Fauci's attorney accused Republicans of punishing the former public health official for exercising his constitutional rights.
"Today's partisan committee vote is a crude political stunt intended to punish Dr. Fauci for exercising his constitutional rights. The Senate should reject Senator Paul's meritless and politically-motivated contempt resolution. For years, Senator Paul has proclaimed to anyone who would listen that Dr. Fauci should be prosecuted and put in prison. Dr. Fauci has committed no crime – and Senator Paul knows it. Today's resolution is a continuation of Senator Paul's personal vendetta against Dr. Fauci, who spent 50 years in public health and has saved countless lives. It is shameful and wrong that Senator Paul is abusing his power by trying to weaponize the Justice Department against an honorable public servant."
Democrats oppose contempt resolution
Democrats argued the vote could discourage future witnesses from cooperating with congressional investigations.
Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., warned that holding someone in contempt for invoking the Fifth Amendment would create a "dangerous precedent."
"If this committee now seeks to punish a witness for asserting their constitutional protected Fifth Amendment rights, future witnesses will argue that appearing before Congress exposes them to punishment, regardless of whether they comply with the subpoena and invoke a constitutional protection."
He added that future witnesses would point "directly to this vote as a justification for refusing to appear at all."
Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., criticized last week's hearing, saying Republicans wanted to "target a single doctor and dedicated public servant, who has testified before Congress many times before, and they wanted to blame him for everything that went wrong during the pandemic."
Hassan also said there is "a real need" for a "serious bipartisan examination" of what worked and what did not during the nation's response to COVID-19.
Democrats unsuccessfully sought to table the contempt resolution before the committee voted.
Fauci declined to answer questions
Fauci appeared before the Senate Oversight Committee last week after receiving a subpoena. During his opening statement and throughout the hearing, he repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment, saying it "pains" him to do so.
His decision prevented the direct exchanges many expected between Fauci and Paul, who has long questioned Fauci about the pandemic response and COVID-19's origins.
"The only conclusion I can reach is that the sole reason he is calling me before this committee is to get me to say something — anything — that could vindicate his repeated public pledges that I end up, in his words, 'behind bars,'" Fauci said.
Paul responded with a warning.
"There will be repercussions for your refusal to testify."
Investigation continues
Republican senators indicated Thursday that their investigation will continue despite Fauci's refusal to answer questions.
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., announced Wednesday that the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations had obtained a copy of Fauci's phone from the Department of Health and Human Services.
"Hopefully, this device will address many of the questions he refused to answer at last week's hearing," Johnson wrote on X.
The department turned over the phone less than a week after providing Fauci's personal diary entries to the committee.
As Straight Arrow previously reported, the diaries include Fauci's personal reflections during the pandemic as well as accounts of private conversations with prominent officials navigating the public health emergency.
Johnson said investigators also want Fauci to participate in a transcribed interview.
