Dr. Fauci's Contempt Drama: What Led to His Senate Showdown?

WASHINGTON — A Senate committee voted on Thursday to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt for declining to answer questions about his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and past testimony to Congress about risky, US-funded “gain of function” research.

The Senate Homeland Security Committee in an 8-5 vote held the former director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases in contempt of Congress for invoking his Fifth Amendment rights and refusing to testify last week about the pandemic.

The contempt resolution authorizes the president of the Senate, which is Vice President JD Vance, to certify the Homeland Security panel’s report on Fauci to DC US Attorney Jeanine Pirro for potential prosecution.