Senate Panel Secures Fauci’s Pandemic Phone Ahead of Contempt Vote

The Senate Homeland Security Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations obtained a copy of Dr. Anthony Fauci’s cellphone records from the Department of Health and Human Services. The transfer, confirmed by subcommittee chair Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), comes just before a Thursday-morning vote by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on whether to hold Fauci, 85, in contempt of Congress for refusing to answer questions about the COVID-19 response and invoking the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times.

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Fauci served as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) for 38 years, retiring at the end of 2022. In January 2025, President Joe Biden issued a sweeping pardon to Fauci, a point Republicans on the panel argue removes any legal basis for invoking the Fifth Amendment. Earlier, Fauci faced a Senate hearing on July 29, 2026, where he declined to answer numerous inquiries, pleading the Fifth Amendment 111 times.

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Sen. Sen. Rand Paul, chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, argued that the pardon eliminates self-incrimination risk and that the committee can refer the contempt case directly to the Justice Department without a full Senate vote. Law professor Mark Osler noted that the case could set a precedent for future presidential pardons affecting congressional investigations.

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• Fifth Amendment pleas: 111 times (hearing, July 2025).

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• Statutory contempt penalties: fines of $100–$100,000 and imprisonment of one to 12 months.

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• DOJ referrals: Paul’s office has sent two criminal referrals under the Biden administration and two under the Trump administration.

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• “Hopefully, this device will address many of the questions he refused to answer at last week’s hearing,” — Sen. Ron Johnson

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• “The committee will have to consider after this hearing what appropriate action should be taken against you for the failure to testify after being directed to do so,” — Rand Paul, security committee chairman

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• “Historically, votes like this have gone to the full Senate, but I think there’s no absolute rule that says we can’t send it directly to the Department of Justice,” — Rand Paul, security committee chairman

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• “This is an important case because I think a lot of people anticipate that President Trump is going to issue similar pardons to many people in his administration who will end up being called before Congress, and the precedent here is important,” — Mark Osler, a law professor and pardon power expert

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