Dr. Anthony Fauci, known as the COVID-19 “explainer-in-chief” during his tenure, played a key role in directing virus policy under two administrations. Despite his numerous public appearances, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., claims Fauci has never apologized for his actions.
Paul stated, “I’d like to hear him say he’s sorry. Can he say he is sorry for funding — the research was dangerous research in China? Almost everybody agrees with that.” He argued that Fauci’s decisions around funding research in China were errors in judgment.
This week, Paul and Fauci are set to confront each other during the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing. The senator has long accused Fauci of backing research in China that allegedly contributed to the COVID-19 outbreak. In preparation for the hearing, Paul shared over a thousand pages of Fauci’s diary, adding his views on Fauci’s actions throughout the pandemic.
Fauci, who left the public eye in 2022 after stepping down as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), faces a long-standing feud with Paul. “I think he actually could do better in the hearing if he’d come forward and apologize for funding this research,” Paul commented. He believes that the public only sees Fauci as someone who claims he never erred.
Paul has argued that Fauci deserves imprisonment for his alleged role in financing gain-of-function research. This research, which involves enhancing a virus’s transmissibility or lethality, has been a central point in Paul’s criticism. Allegations linger that Fauci supported such research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China.
Moreover, Dr. David Morens, Fauci’s former top advisor at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, faced indictment from the Justice Department. He was charged with allegedly conspiring to evade public records laws and to hide communications about the origins of COVID-19.
The broader debate on research that increases a virus’s spread or lethality extends beyond the pandemic. Paul highlighted that back in 2010, Dutch virologist Ron Fouchier conducted research on H5N1, known as bird flu. This work made the virus transmissible “through the air between mammals,” igniting fears within the scientific community.
Paul stated, “Half the scientific community said, ‘Oh my God, this could be the end of the world.'” He recalled that Fauci supported the research, asserting in a Washington Post op-ed that the potential knowledge gained outweighed the risks of a pandemic.