A lawyer for Anthony Fauci insists his client is on "solid legal ground" after Fauci was threatened with prosecution for refusing to answer questions during a combative congressional hearing.
Will Fauci be summoned again in 2026, after pleading the Fifth?
Fauci, the ex-White House chief medical adviser, appeared on Wednesday before a US Senate committee investigating his handling of the Covid pandemic.
He invoked his constitutional right against self-incrimination during testimony more than 100 times, angering Republicans.
Committee chairman Senator Rand Paul suggested Fauci could face contempt-of-Congress proceedings as a result. But Fauci's lawyer said his client was on safe footing, adding: "Rand Paul may be a doctor, but he is not a lawyer."
Paul has long accused Fauci of trying to cover up the origin of Covid, and of funding research at a lab in Wuhan in China, where some theories say the pandemic began. Fauci denies any wrongdoing.
Discussing Fauci's refusal to answer questions on Wednesday, Paul told CBS News: "I think there is a very real chance that he could be prosecuted for that."
It remains unclear whether Fauci could face any charges. He was given a pre-emptive pardon by Joe Biden at the end of his presidency, but Paul suggested that the scope of that pardon could be tested legally.
Source: BBC; https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czdmv0vyv4zo
