Archive · 6 Aug 2026
Senate Panel Votes to Hold Fauci in Contempt
A group of government leaders in the Senate has a special team that asks important people questions.
They wanted to ask Dr. Anthony Fauci, a famous doctor who helped the country during the COVID-19 pandemic, about his work.
Dr. Fauci did go to talk to them, but he refused to answer their questions.
He said "Fifth Amendment" more than 100 times, which is a special rule that lets people stay quiet if they are worried their answers could get them in trouble.
The team was not happy about this, so they voted to say that Dr. Fauci was being disrespectful to the rules, which is called "contempt."
This happened after the team got copies of his diaries and his phone records from his government job.
Those records give new information about how Dr. Fauci helped during the pandemic.
The Senate team thinks he should have answered their questions.
Dr. Fauci used his legal right to stay quiet, and now the two sides disagree about what should happen next.
The Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Senate Homeland Security panel voted to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt.
The vote came just over a week after Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times before the same committee.
The action followed the release of diaries Fauci kept that shed new light on his response to the pandemic.
The subcommittee obtained a copy of Fauci's iPhone records from his time working for the government.
Fauci refused to answer the committee's questions, leading to the contempt vote.
- Who
- Dr. Anthony Fauci and the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Senate Homeland Security panel
- What
- The panel voted to hold Fauci in contempt for refusing to answer questions after he invoked the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times
- When
- Just over a week after Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times before the same committee
- Where
- Before the Senate Homeland Security panel's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
- Why
- Because Fauci refused to answer questions following the release of his diaries and the subcommittee's acquisition of a copy of his iPhone records from his government service
Those who defend Fauci's silence
Those who demand answers
Responding to the committee's questions
Those who defend Fauci's silence
Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times, exercising his legal right not to answer the committee's questions.
Those who demand answers
The panel voted to hold Fauci in contempt because he refused to answer questions before the committee.
The meaning of the new records
Those who defend Fauci's silence
The release of Fauci's diaries reportedly sheds new light on his pandemic response, and he declined to answer questions about them.
Those who demand answers
The subcommittee obtained a copy of Fauci's iPhone records from his government service and pressed for answers as part of its investigation.
- Action
- Contempt vote against Dr. Anthony Fauci
- Committee
- Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Homeland Security panel
- Fifth Amendment invocations
- More than 100 times
- Timing
- Just over a week after Fauci's testimony
- Newly obtained records
- Fauci's diaries and a copy of his iPhone records from his government service
- Context
- Diaries shed new light on Fauci's response to the pandemic