House Oversight Committee questions former HHS Secretary over missing Fauci diary records

The House Oversight Committee, led by Chairman James Comer, has issued a formal inquiry to former HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra regarding his handling of a November 2023 request for Dr. Anthony Fauci's pandemic-era diary and cellphone. The request specifically sought any entries mentioning "COVID-19," "gain-of-function" and "Wuhan," terms that appear throughout the diary. Comer contends that Becerra either neglected to conduct a thorough search or intentionally withheld the materials, and has set a September 2 deadline for answers.

In contrast, the current HHS Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has already supplied the diary and phone to Senators Rand Paul and Ron Johnson earlier this year. The released diary, exceeding 1,000 pages, has sparked controversy for its insight into Fauci's thoughts on school closures and his public profile during the crisis. Fauci himself invoked the Fifth Amendment over 100 times during a July Senate hearing when questioned about the diary's contents. The committee's scrutiny adds another layer to the ongoing political debate over the pandemic response.