Ted Cruz Calls Fauci “America’s Most Damaging Bureaucrat,” Says He Should Face Jail Time
Sen. Ted Cruz is calling for former White House medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci to be prosecuted and jailed following Fauci’s repeated invocation of the Fifth Amendment during a Senate hearing examining the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking after the hearing, Cruz sharply criticized Fauci’s refusal to answer questions from the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, arguing that the former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director’s decision to invoke the Fifth Amendment 111 times will define his legacy. Cruz said Fauci should be held in contempt of Congress, prosecuted for perjury, and ultimately sent to jail.
“Dr. Fauci ought to think about what it says about the end of his career, that what he will be remembered for the most is pleading the Fifth more than 100 times,” Cruz said. The Texas senator went on to describe Fauci as “the most damaging bureaucrat in the history of America,” accusing him of misleading both Congress and the American people throughout the pandemic.
Cruz pointed to recently released personal diaries that he says contradict Fauci’s public statements about the origins of COVID-19 and school shutdowns. According to Cruz, the writings suggest Fauci privately questioned the wet market theory early in the pandemic while publicly dismissing the possibility of a laboratory origin. Cruz also argued the diaries indicate Fauci played a significant role in encouraging school closures despite later denying responsibility for those decisions.
The senator’s remarks came one day after Fauci appeared under subpoena before a committee chaired by Sen. Rand Paul. Throughout the hearing, Fauci declined to answer questions about COVID-19, gain-of-function research, and other aspects of the federal pandemic response, repeatedly invoking his constitutional right against self-incrimination despite having previously received a broad pardon from former President Joe Biden covering potential federal offenses related to his government service.
Paul has since announced plans to pursue contempt proceedings against Fauci, while Cruz said Congress should continue pressing for accountability. The hearing has renewed debate over the government’s handling of the pandemic and is expected to remain a major point of political contention as lawmakers continue investigating decisions made during the COVID-19 crisis.