The Republican effort to hold former National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress has made little progress, with a Wall Street Journal report finding that paperwork missteps involving Sen. Rand Paul's office and Vice President JD Vance have hampered the process.

President Donald Trump and his allies have spent the past two years targeting their perceived foes, using the power of the Justice Department and of Congress itself. Such was the case with Fauci, who was called before the Senate to answer questions from Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and other lawmakers.

Paul, along with colleagues Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio), Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), have all indicated at one time or another that they believe Fauci should be investigated or criminally charged for his role in the COVID-19 crisis, though they have never cited specific laws he broke.

Fauci appeared before Paul again this month, where the senator demanded answers to questions that some viewed as a perjury trap. Fauci invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination in response to every question asked. Republicans then advanced the idea that, despite Fauci showing up and answering every question by taking the Fifth, he should be charged with contempt of Congress. Invoking the Fifth Amendment is a constitutionally protected privilege, and modern contempt-of-Congress prosecutions have typically involved witnesses who refused to appear or produce documents — Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro, for instance, were both convicted of contempt after defying subpoenas from the January 6 committee, and Trump pardoned both in January 2025.

According to the Journal, there has not been much progress since, because Paul's office, along with Vice President Vance, appears to have mishandled the paperwork. Three weeks have passed since the vote, and Trump administration officials doubt anything will really come of Paul's efforts. There is also skepticism about whether the Justice Department could make a case solid enough to take away someone's Fifth Amendment rights, people familiar with the matter told the outlet. Even when referrals are formally made, the decision on charging rests with federal prosecutors: the department has declined to prosecute past congressional contempt referrals, including those against Attorney General Eric Holder in 2012 and former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows in 2021.

Paul bypassed the Senate's full-floor vote by sending the resolution to the vice president for certification, which allows Vance to refer it to the Justice Department for prosecution. Criminal contempt of Congress is a federal misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine, but a referral does not compel prosecution. "The contempt resolution, which passed on a party-line vote, would traditionally be considered by the full Senate," the report said. In this case, however, only the committee voted. "Given his resolution would almost certainly fail to meet a 60-vote threshold [to break a filibuster and] to pass, Paul's measure called on Vance to certify it in his capacity as Senate president," according to the report.

Since then, people familiar with the matter told the Journal that Vance's office never received a document to certify. Paul sent the report to the vice president last Tuesday, his office said. "The Justice Department, which received a letter from Paul the day of the vote laying out the committee's case against Fauci, has yet to receive a formal referral," a person familiar with the case told the Journal.

President Trump has not decided whether he wants the Justice Department to act on the referral, people familiar with the discussions told reporters, adding that it "hasn't been a high priority for the president."

Source: Alternet, citing the Wall Street Journal.