Fauci invokes Fifth Amendment

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the former longtime head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination at the start of a hearing Wednesday on the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The infectious disease expert cited Chair Rand Paul's "obvious obsession" with calling for his prosecution, his "repeated slanderous comments" about him, and the Kentucky Republican's decision to publicly release his personal journal.

"The only conclusion I can reach is that the sole reason he is calling me before this committee is to get me to say something, anything that could vindicate his repeated public pledges that I end up, in his words — quote — 'behind bars,'" he told senators. "Any reasonable person who has followed his unhinged obsession with me would readily come to the same conclusion."

"Therefore, although it pains me to do so because of the respect I have for the legislative branch of government and my decades-long record of cooperating with Congress, under the advice of my attorneys, I will invoke my right under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution to refrain from answering your questions."

Former President Biden issued Dr. Fauci a preemptive pardon in the final days of his term, seeking to shield him from future federal prosecution under the Trump administration.

At the time, Dr. Fauci insisted he had "committed no crime" but was "the subject of politically motivated threats of investigation and prosecution."

The pardon protects him only from federal prosecution for actions he took through Jan. 19, 2025, the date it was issued.

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