Rand Paul pushes Senate committee to send Fauci contempt referral to DOJ without full vote

Republican Senator Rand Paul, chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, voted to refer former NIH director Anthony Fauci for criminal contempt after Fauci repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment rights during a July 29 COVID-19 hearing. Paul intends to transmit the referral straight to the Justice Department and the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, sidestepping the customary full Senate vote that has traditionally preceded such actions.

Democrats on the committee called the tactic a violation of Senate procedure, and the involvement of Vice President JD Vance, who serves as President of the Senate, in certifying the referral is still unclear. The legal question hinges on whether the committee can act alone under 2 U.S.C. § 192 and § 194, which do not expressly mandate a full-chamber vote but have been interpreted that way for decades. Prosecutors will decide if the referral meets the threshold for charges, weighing Fauci’s Fifth Amendment claims and a presidential pardon issued by Joe Biden that covered certain conduct through early 2025. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has expressed support for the contempt tool but has not committed to bringing the resolution to the floor, leaving the procedural showdown unresolved.