Fauci invokes Fifth Amendment in declining to answer questions before Senate panel
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- Anthony Fauci invoked his Fifth Amendment right at a Senate Homeland Security hearing, declining to answer every question on advice of counsel and calling Paul's pursuit "an unhinged obsession" aimed at putting him "behind bars."
- Rand Paul scheduled a committee vote for Aug. 5 on whether to hold Fauci in contempt and floated an untested legal theory that Fifth Amendment protections may not apply to someone who has been pardoned.
- Joe Biden granted Fauci a preemptive pardon during his final hours in office covering acts from 2014 through the end of his administration, but Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told Fox News the pardon does not shield Fauci from perjury charges for new testimony.
- Fauci's attorney David Schertler was ordered escorted from the hearing room by Paul after attempting to make a statement; the released statement accused Paul of pursuing "an intense and seemingly pathological course of retribution, revenge, and obsession."
- The hearing split along partisan lines — Republicans blamed Fauci for lockdowns and vaccine mandates while Democrats warned the spectacle will deter future federal scientists from cooperating with congressional oversight.
Why it matters: An Aug. 5 contempt vote places Fauci in fresh legal jeopardy — Health Secretary RFK Jr. explicitly warned his testimony exposes him to perjury prosecution, despite Biden's preemptive pardon covering 2014 through the end of his term. Democrats warned the spectacle deters future federal scientists from cooperating with congressional oversight.
