Senate committee votes to hold Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress

Published Aug 6, 01:35 PM UTC

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee voted 8-5 along party lines to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress after he pleaded the Fifth Amendment during a hearing. Committee Chair Senator Rand Paul, a longtime critic of Fauci's role in the Covid-19 pandemic response, warned of repercussions. The contempt referral will be sent to Vice President JD Vance for approval, then to the Justice Department, which will decide whether to bring charges. Legal experts doubt the charges would succeed. The move follows a previous unproven accusation of lying to Congress, for which Fauci received a pardon from former President Joe Biden. House Oversight Chairman James Comer also released unredacted pages from Fauci's pandemic-era diary, which Fauci called an attempt to embarrass and intimidate him.