Attorneys general from Florida, Louisiana, and West Virginia have initiated a joint investigation into Dr. Anthony Fauci, focusing on potential violations of state law related to his role during the COVID-19 pandemic. The probe aims to hold Fauci accountable at the state level, asserting that former President Joe Biden's federal pardon does not shield him from state charges.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced his office's investigation on July 29, following Fauci's invocation of his Fifth Amendment right more than 100 times during a Senate committee testimony. Uthmeier stated the inquiry will examine what Fauci knew, when he knew it, and how he may have misled the American public, with a focus on potential physical and monetary harms to Floridians.
Uthmeier officially subpoenaed Fauci on August 5, requesting documents concerning awards, financial incentives, vaccine efficacy, natural immunity, adverse events, and communications with vaccine manufacturers. The subpoena set a deadline of August 31 for compliance.
West Virginia Attorney General John McCuskey and Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill have joined Uthmeier's investigation. McCuskey told Fox News Digital that the collaboration allows states to pool resources and effectively process the extensive material involved. He emphasized the importance of rebuilding public confidence in medical professionals by holding accountable those perceived to have caused its erosion.
Murrill explained that the partnership between Republican attorneys general is crucial for overcoming challenges. "West Virginia and Florida and any other Republican states that want to work with us will be able to better overcome if we work together so that we can pool our resources and we can wade through a lot of this material," she stated.
Murrill also revealed a personal connection to the investigation, noting her young son developed myocarditis after receiving the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine and required hospitalization. She plans to specifically investigate whether Fauci lied during a deposition for the case Murthy v. Missouri, where state governments sued the federal government over alleged collaboration with social media platforms to censor COVID-19-related speech. Murrill indicated potential fraud and perjury charges could be considered, as a presidential pardon does not cover state crimes like perjury, which can carry penalties of up to five years in prison.
McCuskey shared his personal experience, noting that pandemic restrictions forced his family's retail store to close for four months, nearly leading to bankruptcy. He also described how his daughter was prevented from attending kindergarten in person, spending her entire school year doing online classes at home.
McCuskey's office does not have direct prosecutorial power, as that authority rests with county-level prosecutors in West Virginia. However, he intends to provide information gathered from the joint investigation to these prosecutors to facilitate potential criminal prosecutions. "My office would then be able to help them in that prosecution in a whole bunch of ways," McCuskey said.
Both McCuskey and Murrill cited revelations from text messages and internal writings related to Fauci, released by Senators Rand Paul and Ron Johnson, as contributing factors to their renewed scrutiny. They believe these documents suggest Fauci may have made contradictory statements privately and publicly.
While acknowledging the pardon's scope, Murrill clarified its limitations. "It doesn't shield him from state prosecution. The president doesn't have the power to issue a pardon for state crimes. It's that simple. The president only had the power to pardon him for what might be federal criminal activity," she told Fox News Digital.
McCuskey also expressed a broader goal beyond accountability, stating, "it's important to make sure that if this happens again, we have learned every single lesson we can learn so that our response will be swifter, better for the American public, and free from the mistakes made during the crisis."