Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., recently shared updates on his effort to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci accountable for his approach to the COVID-19 pandemic. In an interview with the “Ruthless” podcast, Johnson expressed his discontent with how the pandemic was managed.

“I think our response to COVID was a miserably failed response, freedom robbing,” Johnson said in the interview released Tuesday. “It didn’t work. I mean, it simply didn’t work. And the fact that Fauci has skated now for six years without accountability, this begins that accountability.”

As chair of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, Johnson authored a report accusing the Biden administration of misleading the public during the crisis. This interview occurred days after documents, including Fauci’s journal entries, were released by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, chaired by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky.

Fauci’s journal details his rise to fame, interactions with leadership during the pandemic, and thoughts on the virus’s origins. These topics, along with Fauci’s role and the alleged links to a Chinese lab, remain contentious among Republicans. Fauci served as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and as a medical advisor to Presidents Trump and Biden, stepping down in 2022.

Johnson appreciated the efforts to obtain documents, stating, “I appreciate Chairman Paul calling this hearing, doggedly getting the documents. Again, it’s like pulling teeth getting these documents. Yeah, we finally got some hard drives, whatever those little thumb drives are called, with some of the information from some of his devices… I think there’s still a lot more documents to uncover.” Fauci is set to testify at a Senate Homeland Security hearing.

Additionally, Johnson, now leading the Senate Budget Committee, discussed a new strategy concerning the filibuster process. He noted the potential for Democrats to eliminate the filibuster if they regain full control of Congress.

“The only way I can see Democrats not ending the filibuster is if you have to get them on the record voting not to end it,” Johnson suggested. “Make sure that it is hard-and-fast Senate rule that you can only end the filibuster with 67 votes. You can’t do it using the nuclear option.”