Florida, Alabama, and Louisiana are joining forces to hunt for state crimes possibly committed by Dr. Anthony Fauci, Politico reported.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier fired the opening shot, announcing his investigation and subpoena plans just hours after Fauci's combative July 29 Senate hearing, where the former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination more than 100 times while facing questions from Sen. Rand Paul's (R-KY) committee about the government's pandemic response.
"Fauci's lack of candor to Congress is unbelievable," Uthmeier wrote on social media, announcing his office was launching a formal probe.
Alabama joined almost immediately, followed days later by Louisiana, whose Republican attorney general, Liz Murrill, said she and officials in Missouri had already deposed Fauci and caught him claiming he couldn't recall key details that newly surfaced records now appear to contradict.
Fauci has been a target of fury on the right for years, due to his advocacy for pandemic restrictions. Paul in particular has pushed unfounded claims that Fauci was potentially even responsible for the pandemic by backing so-called "gain of function" viral research in China.
Former President Joe Biden's last-day pardon, intended to protect him from politically motivated prosecutions, covered any federal offenses Fauci may have committed between 2014 and January 2025, but it offers no protection against state-level charges.
Uthmeier's office says it plans to coordinate with Paul, who has offered to hand over what he's called a "mountain of evidence," including more than 1,000 pages from Fauci's personal pandemic-era diary that Paul's committee obtained and released. No subpoenas from Florida have yet been made public, and officials haven't confirmed that they've authenticated any records shared by Paul's team.
José Javier RodrÃguez, the Democrat challenging Uthmeier for Florida attorney general this November, dismissed the probe as a "political stunt."