Senator Rand Paul urges DOJ to charge Dr. Fauci after Senate contempt vote

On Aug. 6, Senator Rand Paul submitted a referral to the Justice Department seeking criminal charges against Dr. Anthony Fauci after the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee voted to find him in contempt of Congress. The resolution, passed on a party-line vote, accuses the former top infectious-disease official of ignoring a subpoena during a hearing where he repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment.

Paul chose to send the request without a full Senate vote, prompting Democrats to label the action a breach of Senate rules and potentially dangerous. A Justice Department spokesperson confirmed the referral had been forwarded to DOJ leadership and the Washington, D.C., U.S. Attorney’s Office for review. The move escalates a long-running Republican effort to assign blame for the pandemic response, a campaign echoed by President Donald Trump, who suggested Fauci could face prosecution similar to Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon. Fauci’s lawyer called the contempt vote a political stunt and denied any criminal wrongdoing.