Dear Diary

It may have felt like “déjà vu all over again” this week, as the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee held a hearing to put Dr. Anthony Fauci on the hot seat once again over COVID-19 shutdowns and vaccine mandates. While director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases during the pandemic, Fauci became the self-appointed expert and policymaker. The American people suffered under his recommendations and assertions. It became clear that all his decisions were built on lies and fueled by narcissism and revealed by his own so-called ‘diary’ he kept on government computers.

Committee Chair Rand Paul (R-KY) opened the hearing with a speech highlighting the incredible consequences inflicted by the pandemic and Fauci’s role in the government’s failures. In part, he stated:

The COVID lockdown could never have been inflicted without you aiding and abetting the crime. Children lost years of education, small businesses built over a lifetime disappeared, patients delayed cancer screenings and other medical care, families were separated from dying relatives, workers were ordered to accept a medical procedure or lose their jobs, worship assembly, employment, education, and travel were restricted in the name of science. While you did not impose every restriction, you used your public authority to justify them.

When it was Dr. Fauci’s turn to make opening remarks, all he did was claim that Sen. Paul had an “unhinged obsession” with him. Despite his preemptive pardon by President Biden, he decided not to answer a single question. Every time a question was directed to him, he repeated the phrase, “On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer based upon my rights under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.” Of course, that right is the right against self-incrimination. 

At one point in the hearing, one of Dr. Fauci’s attorneys present attempted to sit at the table with him. Sen. Paul told him to sit in the row behind as he had been instructed earlier. When he refused, security escorted him out of the room. The committee made it clear that Dr. Fauci and his attorneys were no longer allowed to pretend that the rules don’t apply to them.

Much of the rhetoric surrounded Dr. Fauci’s diary. Earlier this week, Sen. Paul released over 1,100 pages of notes that Dr. Fauci kept on government servers. It revealed the extent of his conceit. He detailed all celebrities and politicians he rubbed shoulders with, every news interview, and the compliments he received.

Worse, the diary shows discrepancies in what he learned versus what he told the public. In news interviews and before the House Oversight Committee, he denied any involvement in urging school and business lockdowns. However, entries in his diary two years prior state that he had personal phone calls with officials like New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and a California Governor Gavin Newsom staffer where he convinced them to shut down their cities.

The diary also highlights the early discussions about the origins of COVID-19. Dr. Fauci was aware that the leak likely came from a lab in Wuhan, China that was federally funded to conduct gain-of-function research on coronaviruses. He convened a call with 12 infectious disease scientists on February 1, 2020, to seek initial thoughts. Ten of the scientists believed that this could have only been released by accident or on purpose from someone inside the lab because the spike protein within COVID-19 is not something found in nature. Yet, in May of that year, he publicly said that the virus was consistent with originating from animals.

While people lost their jobs, Dr. Fauci used his position to enrich his own bank account. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) called attention to Dr. Fauci’s directives to his staff to apply for awards and commendations that included cash “prizes.” His staff was asked to work with the government ethics office to ensure Fauci could pocket the funds himself. He pursued eight such awards totaling $1 million during the COVID pandemic. During that time, he was the highest-paid federal employee, making $480,000 per year, not including the cash awards he received. Now, his net worth is over $12 million, and he received $400,000 in pension benefits his first year of retirement.

Sen. Bernie Moreno followed with his own questioning. He asked members of the audience to stand up if they had suffered repercussions from disagreeing with vaccine mandates, school closures, mask mandates, loss of jobs, or simply disagreeing with Dr. Fauci’s edicts. When a large majority of the crowd stood, Sen. Moreno then asked Dr. Fauci to turn around to see some of the people hurt by his behavior. He never turned around to look. Dr. Fauci’s refusal to take accountability for his actions was appalling.

Later in the hearing, Sen. Joni Ernst brought up an aspect that had not been touched on. She brought light to research funded by taxpayer dollars under the direction of Dr. Fauci using aborted baby body parts. Her team found documents that described baby scalps that were grafted onto mice that grew hair. The federal government facilitated the horrendous trafficking of baby body parts. These actions were stopped by the Trump administration earlier this year.

Even though we did not get any new answers from Dr. Fauci, Sen. Paul still plans to hold him liable for his actions. While former President Joe Biden gave Dr. Fauci a preemptive pardon that covers his duties from 2014-2024, it does not cover his actions before the Senate this week. An 1896 Supreme Court ruling decided that a pardon grants immunity, so the Fifth Amendment does not apply and does not shield him from penalties for perjury. Sen. Paul said he will push for a vote next week to hold Dr. Fauci in contempt of court for refusing to answer questions.

We also cannot forget the scientists and doctors who pushed back on Dr. Fauci’s claims and were punished. Physician Jay Bhattacharya was one of the first public dissenters to the lockdowns and encouraged the government to take herd immunity into account when making decisions. Dr. Bhattacharya was censored on social media for opposing lockdown, mask, and vaccine mandates. Dr. Fauci publicly dismissed him, calling him a “fringe epidemiologist” and referring to Bhattacharya and his colleagues in his diary as the “3 Stooges.” The joke is now on Dr. Fauci. In 2025, President Trump named Dr. Bhattacharya the director of the National Institutes of Health.

The COVID-19 pandemic isn’t old news — it’s news that needs to be talked about frequently and remembered with disdain. It’s an example of how power-hungry leaders can institute the principles of communism in an instant. We are grateful for Sen. Paul’s leadership on this issue. To watch the entire hearing, visit the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee website here.

At Eagle Forum, we continually combat the dangers of communism by engaging our elected officials on policies. Being informed and equipped is the most powerful tool of our grassroots community. From September 24-26, we will be gathering in person in Nashville, Tennessee, to learn more about the issues that affect American families and trade ideas to bring about the most change. Check out our event page here. We would love to see you there!