Fauci invokes Fifth Amendment, refuses to answer Senate Covid questions

Published Jul 30, 02:39 PM UTC

Former White House chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci refused to answer questions during a three-hour Senate hearing on the government's Covid-19 pandemic response, repeatedly invoking his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. The hearing was convened by Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who subpoenaed Fauci and threatened to call a contempt of Congress vote. In his opening remarks, Fauci accused Paul of an 'obvious obsession' with seeing him prosecuted, stating the sole purpose of the hearing was to get him to say something that could lead to criminal charges. Fauci's attorney criticized Paul for building his 'personal brand' around prosecuting Fauci for 'imaginary crimes.' Paul expressed disappointment that Fauci did not apologize or acknowledge judgment errors. The Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee is scheduled to vote on the contempt resolution on August 5. Politico noted that the hearing revealed lingering public anger over lockdowns, vaccines, and mask mandates.