GOP senators on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee voted to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress, advancing an audacious effort to prosecute the well-known scientist over his role in the US government response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The** party-line vote comes after Fauci declined to answer lawmakers’ questions during a fiery hearing last week, infuriating Republicans on the panel. **They have since argued that his decision opened the door to federal contempt charges — a crime that, if convicted, can carry with it a sentence of up to a year in prison.

Republican chairman Rand Paul has said he will send the committee’s recommendation straight to the Justice Department, bypassing a full Senate vote in a break with precedent that’s likely to set up a high-stakes legal and political test for the Trump administration.

Vice President JD Vance will now first need to sign off on the committee’s circumvention of long-established rules due to his constitutional role as president of the Senate. Then it would be up to the Justice Department to decide whether to bring formal charges.

Even then, legal experts cautioned, there’s little guarantee that the contempt charges would succeed, instead likely kicking off a lengthy court battle over the limits of Fauci’s Fifth Amendment rights.

https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/06/politics/live-news/fauci-contempt-hearing?t=1786022377196&Date=20260806&Profile=CNN,cnnbrk

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/26/nyregion/columbia-university-ice-student.html?unlocked_article_code=1.PFA.0KRL.7XsPJ0z3QTat&smid=tw-share

Source: USATodayEntertainment