On Thursday, August 6th, 2026, a Republican-controlled US Senate committee voted to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress following his repeated refusal to answer questions during a hearing about his management of the Covid-19 pandemic. Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), led the agency for 38 years before retiring in 2022.

During the hearing, Fauci invoked his Fifth Amendment rights dozens of times, declining to provide clarifying answers amid what he described as a hostile inquisition. He stated, “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.”

The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, chaired by Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, voted to refer a potential criminal case against Fauci to the US Department of Justice. Fauci accused Paul of having an “unhinged obsession” with him and suggested Paul aimed to “embarrass and intimidate” him and to put him “behind bars” due to his role in advocating pandemic restrictions such as masking and social distancing.

Senator Paul denied attempting to entrap Fauci, stating, “He had no liability if he told the truth.” However, some critics, including Peters, described the investigation as “a one-sided investigation and a rushed process … that could harm our ability to conduct future investigations.”

The evening before the vote, the US Department of Health and Human Services provided a copy of Fauci’s phone to a Senate subcommittee. Republican Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, the subcommittee chair, expressed hope that the device would answer many questions Fauci refused to address during the hearing.

While the committee’s contempt referral must typically be approved by the full Senate, such approval would likely require a 60-vote majority, necessitating Democratic support.

Fauci, 85, was pardoned by President Joe Biden at the end of his presidency.

Sources