Fauci made a couple of media appearances on Monday and Tuesday, just after announcing his resignation from both the White House and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
According to The Daily Wire, Dr. Fauci told MSNBC that he did not flip flop on any issues, instead, he was following the evolution of science.
Fauci: "With covid, things that we thought we knew at the beginning as the months went by turned out not to be the case… That was interpreted as flip flopping when it really was the evolution of the science." pic.twitter.com/mxG27yEV9g
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) August 23, 2022
Then, on Fox News, host Neil Cavuto asked Fauci if he regretted “the shut down, the sweeping shutdown, that some say made things worse,” but Fauci denied that he “shut anything down.”
"Do you regret the sweeping shutdown that some said made things worse?"
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) August 23, 2022
FAUCI: "No…I didn't shut down anything." pic.twitter.com/IZqMTZ0hIb
Fauci can do all of the media appearances he wants and try to set his record straight, but he cannot escape what the future GOP-controlled house has planned for him.
According to Breitbart. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), the House Minority Leader, said Monday the Republican-led House will hold Dr. Fauci accountable.
“Dr. Fauci lost the trust of the American people when his guidance unnecessarily kept schools closed and businesses shut while obscuring questions about his knowledge on the origins of COVID,” McCarthy said Monday, adding, “He owes the American people answers,” McCarthy said Monday. “A @HouseGOP majority will hold him accountable,” he continued
Breitbart also notes, as a Republican, McCarthy is not the first to say Fauci’s departure won’t protect him from answering tough questions about the origins of the Coronavirus – a battle Sen. Paul (R-KY) continues to fight Fauci’s claim that NIAID funded gain-of-function research despite Fauci’s denies.
Paul on Monday also warned that Fauci’s departure will not stop a GOP-led investigation.
“Fauci’s resignation will not prevent a full-throated investigation into the origins of the pandemic. He will be asked to testify under oath regarding any discussions he participated in concerning the lab leak,” Paul said.
And, as reported by the Daily Wire, Senator Paul also demanded that the National Institutes of Health retain all communications and documents in Dr. Anthony Fauci’s possession as his retirement draws closer. The NIH was asked by Paul to preserve all records, e-mails, electronic documents, and data that Fauci may have created or shared while at the NIH. It was Paul’s request that they preserve any data or communications relating to COVID or to any coronavirus-related research conducted by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) while Fauci held the position of director.
Meanwhile, Louisiana Senator John Kennedy also confirmed to Fox News host Sean Hannity on Monday that if Republicans take back either the House or the Senate in 2022, Fauci is likely to face some questions.
Sen. John Kennedy says that if Republicans take back Congress, unless Fauci "decides to seek asylum in some foreign country whose Powerball jackpot is 287 chickens and a goat," he will "be spending a lot of time in front of a Congressional committee." pic.twitter.com/E3RbOAA9mk
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) August 23, 2022
However, Fauci claimed that the reason he is leaving his job has “nothing to do” with the possibility that Republicans might take over the House and subsequently launch an investigation of his actions.
NIAID Director and Chief Medical Adviser to President Biden Dr. Anthony Fauci on stepping down from current roles pic.twitter.com/sP8AvttcIU
— Neil Cavuto (@TeamCavuto) August 23, 2022