The former NIAID director pled the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times during a committee hearing this week.
Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky chaired the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing this week, during which Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, invoked his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself more than 100 times. Dr. Fauci, who held a key role in the White House Coronavirus Task Force during the pandemic, had been subpoenaed after refusing to appear before the committee voluntarily.
Senator Paul released diary entries recorded on government computers by Dr. Fauci during the COVID-19 pandemic ahead of Wednesday’s Senate hearing. Senator Paul stated, “What [Fauci] wrote privately and what he told the country are two different stories.”
At the hearing, Senator Paul said to Dr. Fauci, “You could not hide that your agency had funded the Wuhan research, or your long history of defending gain-of-function research. The only alternative left was to argue that COVID-19 did not originate in the Wuhan lab. You were not a detached observer. You had an institutional interest in the public believing that federally funded research had nothing to do with the pandemic.”
“It is secrecy that destroys trust. It is arrogance that destroys trust. It is censorship that destroys trust, and it is the refusal to admit error that destroys trust,” Senator Paul continued. “That loss of trust may be your most damaging legacy. Trust can’t be ordered; it has to be earned. No scientist is above scrutiny. No government official is beyond accountability.”
Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri stated that Dr. Fauci could not invoke the Fifth Amendment because he had received a presidential pardon from President Joe Biden. Senator Hawley cited Supreme Court precedent and said that Dr. Fauci was showing contempt for both Congress and the American people.
After Dr. Fauci’s refusal to answer any questions under the Fifth Amendment, Senator Paul said, “Because you refused to answer, citing a privilege that is unsupported because of your pardon… this committee has scheduled a vote next week on a resolution certifying your contempt.”
The Florida attorney general announced that his state would be conducting an investigation into Dr. Fauci’s actions surrounding the pandemic. The presidential pardon only covers federal charges, not those brought by a state.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For Senator Paul and members of the committee as they prepare for vote on whether to hold Dr. Fauci in contempt of Congress.
- For President Trump and officials in his administration to support the nation’s economy and protect American liberty.
- For wisdom for state attorneys general as they consider the impact of Dr. Fauci’s actions on their jurisdictions.
Sources: Daily Wire, Townhall, NPR
