Fauci's lawyer declines voluntary Senate subcommittee appearance after Fifth Amendment invokes

Anthony Fauci's legal counsel turned down Senator Ron Johnson's invitation for a voluntary appearance before the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, citing potential political harassment after Fauci invoked his Fifth Amendment right more than 100 times during a July hearing. The refusal follows a party-line vote by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to hold Fauci in contempt of Congress.

Committee chairman Rand Paul plans to forward the contempt referral directly to the U.S. Attorney's Office in the District of Columbia, arguing that former President Joe Biden's pre-emptive pardon eliminates any threat of federal prosecution. Paul has long scrutinized Fauci's role in the COVID-19 response, including allegations about risky research linked to a lab-leak theory. Johnson's panel has already secured a copy of Fauci's pandemic-era cellphone and over 1,000 pages of his personal diary. The dispute highlights ongoing partisan battles over the handling of the pandemic and the legal limits of congressional inquiries.