Former United States chief public health official, Dr. Anthony Fauci, repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination during a high-profile Senate hearing, a strategy his advisers said was carefully designed to prevent fresh legal exposure as Republican lawmakers intensified efforts to pursue perjury allegations linked to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The marathon hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee marked Fauci’s first major public appearance in years and renewed his long-running clash with Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has repeatedly questioned the former health official’s handling of the Covid-19 crisis.
People close to Fauci said the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases entered the hearing with one objective: to avoid creating any new legal liabilities.
According to the sources, Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times, declining to answer questions that could potentially expose him to fresh criminal allegations despite receiving a pre-emptive presidential pardon in 2025.
“There was no other option,” one person close to Fauci said.
The source explained that Republicans had publicly indicated that the hearing was intended to uncover evidence that could support new perjury charges not covered by the pardon issued by former President Joe Biden.
“Rand Paul has millions of documents that he could bring up over a 50-year career. (Fauci) has nothing in front of him,” the person added.
The report said Fauci’s legal team believed that even minor differences between his previous public statements and any testimony before the committee could be used as the basis for new accusations.
As part of its preparations, Fauci’s advisers reportedly revised his opening statement several times to ensure it would not weaken his constitutional claim against self-incrimination.
Rather than discuss his actions during the pandemic, Fauci used his opening remarks to criticise the hearing and accused Paul of having an “unhinged obsession” with imprisoning him.
According to people familiar with the preparations, Fauci’s team also deliberately withheld its intention to invoke the Fifth Amendment before the hearing, leaving Republican lawmakers uncertain about how he would respond.
Despite Fauci’s repeated refusal to answer questions, the hearing continued for several hours as Republican senators renewed criticism of his role during the pandemic.
Senator Paul later pledged to seek a committee vote next week to hold Fauci in contempt of Congress over his refusal to testify.
The report noted that Paul has argued he could forward a contempt referral directly to the United States Department of Justice, although it remains unclear whether such a move would be legally sustainable.
A spokesperson for Fauci declined to comment on the matter, while Paul’s office did not respond to requests for comment.
The hearing also returned Fauci to the national spotlight after several years away from government following his retirement in 2023.
According to the report, Fauci has since devoted much of his retirement to consulting lawyers and advisers as Republican investigations into his conduct continued.
The report further stated that some individuals associated with Fauci have also faced scrutiny, including his wife, Christine Grady, who was among senior health officials reportedly dismissed or reassigned during restructuring at the National Institutes of Health under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
