Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, called for former White House medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci to face criminal charges, stating that he "should be held in contempt [of Congress], he should be prosecuted for perjury, and he should go to jail." Cruz's remarks followed Fauci's invocation of the Fifth Amendment 111 times during a Senate hearing.
Fauci, the 85-year-old former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, appeared before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in response to a subpoena. He declined to answer questions regarding his decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic response and his role in funding research at laboratories in China, where the outbreak originated.
Cruz asserted that Fauci has demonstrated "contempt for Congress and contempt for the American people for decades." He cited Fauci's alleged diary entries, claiming they showed Fauci deliberately misled the public. According to Cruz, Fauci wrote in his diary that the COVID-19 virus did not originate from the Wuhan wet market but later publicly stated the opposite. Cruz also claimed Fauci's diary indicated he bragged about convincing New York and California to implement school shutdowns, despite publicly stating he was not in favor of them.
"The school shutdowns, which Fauci bragged that he was responsible for, may well be the single most destructive public policy step we’ve seen in decades," Cruz stated. "That learning loss will stick with those kids the rest of their lives."
Senator John Fetterman, D-Pa., a member of the committee, suggested that while holding Fauci accountable is appropriate, the prolonged questioning of an 85-year-old individual was excessive. "I do think it’s entirely appropriate to really hold Fauci accountable, but I don’t think it’s really appropriate to pound an 85-year-old man … just to try to humiliate the guy," Fetterman told NewsNation’s “Cuomo.” He questioned the necessity of forcing Fauci to repeatedly invoke his Fifth Amendment right.