Senate Votes to Hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in Contempt; Obtains His Phone

After Dr. Anthony Fauci pleaded the Fifth, a Senate committee takes action, after obtaining a copy of his phone

From CBS News:

The Senate Homeland Security Committee voted Thursday to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress over his refusal to answer questions during testimony before the committee last week, arguing that he inappropriately invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

“Holding a witness in contempt is a serious thing, and it should be rare,” Sen. Rand Paul, the committee chairman, said as the panel gathered Thursday. “But the contempt power exists for precisely this circumstance.”

The contempt resolution described how Fauci would be “proceeded against in the manner and form provided by law,” pursuant to two statutes (2 U.S.C. 192 and 2 U.S.C. 194), for refusal to “answer questions pertinent to the subject under inquiry.”

Paul indicated that if the committee voted as it did, he’d immediately refer the matter to the Department of Justice, which is not obligated to prosecute. The DOJ told the Washington Post it “seriously reviews all congressional referrals.” Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal broke another story last night:

A Senate panel investigating Dr. Anthony Fauci has obtained a copy of the doctor’s iPhone, potentially securing even more records related to the doctor’s actions during the Covid-19 pandemic. The copy of the phone was transferred by the Department of Health and Human Services to the Senate Homeland Security Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, which is chaired by Sen. Ron Johnson (R., Wis.).

This revelation comes just days after copies of Fauci’s journals were publicly released following their transfer from HHS to Congress. Two Republican senators, Johnson and Rand Paul of Kentucky, have increased pressure on Fauci in recent days to answer questions related to pandemic health measures and the origins of Covid-19.

Data from Fauci’s phone is a good bet add to public understanding both of Covid’s origins and the official response to the pandemic. As noted above, Paul already released Fauci’s diaries, in addition to a less-covered batch of “investigation records” posted last Tuesday. Racket has two stories in the works about the new materials, and I’m also going to do a livestream with Dr. Matt Bivens tomorrow summarizing the evidence for and against a lab leak, as the ongoing mystery as to Covid’s origins remains the most important story. Bivens and I will go through individual “investigation records” and also look at previously released records and video that were largely overlooked in coverage.

Check this space tomorrow morning for information about the time of the livestream. We’ll likely do it mid-afternoon, around 3 p.m. Standby also for a piece on the “investigation records.” More to come.