Anthony Fauci invokes the Fifth at Senate hearing on COVID

The US Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee opened its hearing with Dr. Anthony Fauci, then medical expert and adviser to led US’ response during COVID-19.

During the hearing, Fauci repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment rights as Republican members, especially Chairman Rand Paul of Kentucky delivered a barrage of questions against him.

Sen. Paul has for years questioned the origins of the COVID virus and federal health officials' accounts.

In his remarks at the top of the hearing, Fauci accused Paul of having an "obvious obsession with calling for my prosecution."

Fauci’s decision take the Fifth shields him from answering questions that could expose him to accusations of lying under oath.

Though he received a pardon in early 2025 from Democratic President Joe Biden, some Republicans pursuing a yearslong campaign for his arrest had suggested he could still face charges for any perjury committed during Wednesday's hearing.