Former immunologist Anthony Fauci, 85, has invoked Fifth Amendment protections to refuse to answer questions from U.S. senators about his response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Fauci appeared Wednesday before the Republican-led Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, led by Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has criticized doctors’ records during the pandemic.
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Fauci repeatedly said the following line: “On the advice of my attorney and in accordance with my Fifth Amendment rights, I respectfully decline to respond.”
In his opening statement, he described invoking the Fifth Amendment as “painful,” but also said he feared Paul would bend his words to pursue criminal charges.
“The only reason he called me to this committee is to push me to say something, anything, that would justify his repeated promises that I would ultimately be, in his words, ‘in jail,'” Fauci said.
Fauci led the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the beginning of the coronavirus crisis in late 2019 and early 2020.
The pandemic has thrust Fauci into the spotlight and made him a household name. But his medical guidance brought him into conflict with President Donald Trump during the waning days of his first term.
After Trump lost the 2020 election, Fauci became chief medical adviser to Trump’s successor, Democrat Joe Biden, during the first half of his presidential term. He resigned from his position at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the White House in 2022.
Republican lawmakers have long criticized Fauci’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak, with some accusing him of lying about the origins of the pandemic, which he denies.
Although Fauci received a presidential pardon from Biden, some of his critics have suggested he could still be prosecuted for perjury under oath.
In June, Paul subpoenaed Fauci to appear before a Senate committee over the immunologist’s decision not to testify voluntarily.
In his opening statement Wednesday, Paul sought to build a case that Fauci helped cause the COVID-19 pandemic by approving funding for research into virus mutations and covered up his complicity.
“Today, we hope that Dr. Fauci will come clean and admit that funding the research in China was a mistake, and that the risks of this research outweighed the possible benefits,” Paul said.
Other Republicans, including Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, criticized Fauci for dodging the question.
“Well, what says integrity more than accepting a fifth person, sir?” said Holly.
Use of the Fifth Amendment does not imply guilt or innocence. Rather, it is a constitutional mechanism to protect individuals from being forced to provide potentially self-incriminating testimony where there is a reasonable fear of prosecution.
Experts say Fauci’s decision to invoke the Fifth Amendment during his testimony could help him avoid calls for prosecution if he is accused of lying during Wednesday’s hearing.
On Wednesday afternoon, President Trump took questions from reporters about Fauci’s attendance at the Senate hearing. President Trump said he disagreed with Fauci on many topics and accused Fauci of making “a lot of mistakes.” He also said he was “not a big fan” of the retired immunologist.
Asked why Fauci may have invoked the Fifth Amendment, Trump said: “Why he did it is very simple: Because his lawyer told him to do it. I don’t know if he would have been better off not doing it.” There were many questions that he knew he could answer, but there were also questions that he might not have been comfortable answering. But his lawyer told him to do so. ”
Fauci’s refusal to answer questions on Wednesday could further intensify partisan rifts that have been festering for years over the origins and response to the pandemic.
The most common theory about the origins of COVID-19 is the “zoonotic spillover” theory, or the virus jumped from animals to humans.
But some believe the virus may have originated in a laboratory environment, a theory supported by the Trump White House and Senator Paul.
However, there is no new scientific information to support that “lab leak” theory.
Fauci himself has long maintained that both theories are acceptable, but that there is more evidence to support the idea that COVID-19 jumped from animals to humans, as other coronavirus strains like SARS and MERS have.
Fauci has long been the target of coronavirus-related complaints. Fauci said in his opening statement that Paul was “clearly obsessed with seeking my prosecution.”
U.S. medical experts largely support Fauci, calling the accusations against him “unfounded.”
In an open letter earlier this month, more than 150 infectious disease experts and other scientists wrote that “no credible evidence has emerged” to support the “absurd charge” that Fauci covered up the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.
“These conspiracy theories led to five years of harassment and threats of violence against Dr. Fauci and his family,” the letter said. “Now is the time to stand up for scientists and say no to witch hunts.”
A Republican-led subcommittee investigating the origins of the 2024 coronavirus disease found no evidence linking Fauci to wrongdoing.
