FULL HEARING: Dr. Fauci pleads the fifth during congressional COVID-19 origins hearing [3XvpnFXgqT2]
Dr. Anthony Fauci appeared before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee on Wednesday after being subpoenaed by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who has led several investigations into Fauci’s handling of the pandemic and National Institutes of Health funding for virus research in China. Fauci said he had testified more than 200 times over his nearly four decades running the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and that he could not answer questions on the advice of his lawyers. Every question posed to Fauci was met with the invocation of the Fifth Amendment, leaving lawmakers with little new insight to his thinking or actions during the pandemic. Fauci has appeared before congressional panels several times since the outset of the pandemic, that have regularly turned into partisan brawls among lawmakers. Several Republican lawmakers viewed Fauci’s refusal to answer questions as an admission of guilt and claimed he did not need to invoke the Fifth Amendment because of the pardon granted by former President Joe Biden over concerns he could be targeted by a potentially vindictive prosecution by the Trump administration. “I certainly understand why, on the advice of counsel, you're not answering any questions because I think it'll be almost impossible for you to answer the questions truthfully without really demonstrating what you did, your culpability,” said Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis. The Fifth Amendment protects individuals from being compelled to provide testimony that could incriminate them. Courts have consistently held invoking the right is not an admission of guilt by itself. _______________ Hit the subscribe button to stay up-to-date on the latest news, and turn on the notifications to get alerted when the big stories break as we bring them to you live! For all the full stories seen here, go to kutv.com. Follow KUTV 2News on our other social media pages for more photos, videos and reports: Facebook: KUTV2News TikTok: @kutv2news X: @kutv2news Instagram: @kutv2news Threads: @kutv2news Bluesky: @kutv2news.bsky.social If you see something newsworthy happen, or you just witness something incredible, hilarious or adorable, you can send your videos, photos and news tips to kutv.com/chimein. We love sharing our favorites on kutv.com, our social media and our broadcasts! You can also submit tips by email or phone. Email: [email protected] Call the Newsroom: 801.839.1234 _______________ KUTV is a Utah-based station and a CBS Television affiliate owned and operated by Sinclair Broadcast Group. Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. is one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies in the country today. Sinclair owns and operates, programs or provides sales services to nearly 200 television stations in 86 markets. Sinclair's television group reaches close to 40% of US television households and includes FOX, ABC, MyTV, CW, CBS, NBC, Univision and Azteca affiliates. #kutv #saltlakecity #news #utah