Paul Unveils Fauci’s Diaries Before Tense Senate Hearing
Sen. Rand Paul has released Dr. Anthony Fauci’s diaries ahead of a combative Senate hearing that is expected to put the retired infectious disease expert
Sen. Rand Paul has released Dr. Anthony Fauci’s diaries ahead of a combative Senate hearing that is expected to put the retired infectious disease expert back under the Washington spotlight on Wednesday. The papers add fuel to a long-running clash between the Kentucky Republican and the man who became the public face of the US response to Covid-19.
The hearing, before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, is set to be one more contentious appearance for Fauci, 85, who was subpoenaed in June after he initially declined to show up voluntarily. Paul, who chairs the panel, has spent years pressing Fauci over the pandemic and what he sees as failings in the US response. Tense. Very tense.
A familiar witness returns to Capitol Hill
Fauci has been on Capitol Hill about 250 times over the course of his career, testifying on threats ranging from HIV/AIDS to Ebola and, later, Covid-19. Even before the US imposed a national shutdown during the pandemic, he had already begun wondering whether he may have appeared before Congress more often than any other official.
This week’s appearance marks another turn in a relationship that has long been defined by public clashes. Paul has repeatedly tried to pin responsibility for the Covid crisis on Fauci, while Fauci’s allies have pointed to the senator’s persistent campaign against him. The former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director did not agree to come willingly. His refusal set up the subpoena and the showdown now looming on Wednesday.
Why the diaries matter now
Internal correspondence shared with CNN shows Fauci first declined Paul’s request to appear voluntarily. The message cited his past disputes with the senator and Paul’s efforts to seek his indictment. That backdrop gives the release of the diaries a sharper edge, especially as lawmakers prepare for another round of questioning over the pandemic years.
Paul’s move ensures the hearing will not be a routine postscript to Fauci’s public service. It will instead reopen one of Washington’s most bitter pandemic-era fights, with both men arriving at the same table under very different assumptions about what the Covid response got right, and what went badly wrong.
The committee hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, and Fauci’s testimony will add one more entry to a career already marked by extraordinary time on the Hill. The questions waiting for him are unlikely to be gentle. Paul has made clear where he stands, and his diary release keeps the confrontation front and center.
