(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Embattled Dr. Anthony Fauci could be held in contempt of Congress as early as Thursday after Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., announced that his committee will vote on a resolution stemming from Fauci’s refusal to answer questions during a recent Senate hearing.
Paul said via X that the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will vote Thursday on whether to hold Fauci in contempt after he repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination during a tense July 29 hearing.
Paul also released the text of the proposed contempt resolution through the committee’s website.
🚨DROPPED: My contempt resolution for Anthony Fauci pic.twitter.com/JKiYEbwgtX
— Senator Rand Paul (@SenRandPaul) August 4, 2026
The hearing focused on the release of Fauci’s pandemic-era government notes, which appeared to contradict several of his public statements about COVID-19.
Among other revelations, the notes suggested Fauci privately viewed the theory that the virus leaked from a laboratory as plausible despite publicly dismissing the theory as fringe.
At the center of the contempt effort is Paul’s argument that Fauci could not invoke the Fifth Amendment because former President Joe Biden’s sweeping pardon shields him from federal prosecution for conduct occurring between Jan. 1, 2014, and Jan. 20, 2025.
According to Paul, that protection eliminated any legitimate risk of self-incrimination.
“Anthony Fauci is fully protected by a sweeping pardon, immune from prosecution, and he still refuses to comply with a lawful subpoena. That’s the very definition of contempt for the American people,” Paul wrote on X.
Anthony Fauci is fully protected by a sweeping pardon, immune from prosecution, and he still refuses to comply with a lawful subpoena. That's the very definition of contempt for the American people.
On Thursday, the HSGAC will vote to hold him in contempt.
— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) August 4, 2026
Paul first hinted that he planned to pursue contempt proceedings after the hearing.
In a statement released by the committee, Paul reiterated that Fauci effectively forfeited his protection against self-incrimination during the hearing.
“During the hearing, I ruled that the Fifth Amendment did not apply because of the pardon, and that Fauci had waived any remaining privilege by giving opening testimony,” Paul said in the statement. “I ordered him to answer and warned him about contempt, yet he still refused. That is obstruction of a congressional investigation. The Committee will act accordingly.”
