Republicans ramp up attacks on Fauci

House Republicans say they aren’t finished with Anthony Fauci.

Emboldened by newly uncovered emails showing attempts by top aides to evade public record laws and lingering anger over coronavirus mitigation efforts, Republicans say they want to bring criminal charges against the nation’s former top infectious diseases official.  

Fauci was widely viewed as the public face of the coronavirus pandemic, but Republicans think they are close to finding a smoking gun proving not only that he lied to Congress but that he led a government cover-up about the origins of the virus. 

Fauci has been a lightning rod for criticism from conservatives, particularly among allies of former President Trump. Calls to prosecute the 83-year-old former head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) for unspecified crimes have become a rallying cry among some on the right.