Power Grab/Fire anyone who can stop him
After a Senate committee votes to hold Anthony Fauci in contempt, Trump says “maybe” the Justice Department should prosecute him
Fauci repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment at a subpoenaed July 29 hearing on COVID-19.
What happened
On August 6, 2026, the Senate Homeland Security Committee voted to hold Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress. Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, had testified under subpoena on July 29 and repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment.
Asked the same day whether the Justice Department should prosecute Fauci, Trump answered that “maybe” it should. This came shortly after the committee chairman said he would refer Fauci to the department. The quote is reported by MS NOW, citing the original record.
No charge against Fauci had been reported by the time of this review. A contempt referral leaves it to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia to decide whether to present the matter to a grand jury, a decision the Justice Department has treated as discretionary.
Who benefited
Trump gained a congressional referral and a public opening to call for the prosecution of a figure his movement blames for the pandemic response. Trump had revoked Fauci’s security detail on returning to office in January 2025, and his “Lab Leak” messaging casts Fauci as a culprit in the pandemic’s origins.
Who wanted something
The committee’s Republican majority voted the contempt citation, and its chairman pledged a referral. Trump endorsed prosecution when asked. The Justice Department under Blanche, who had just testified that it is not independent of the president, would make the charging call.
Who lost out
Fauci, 84 and retired, faces possible federal charges for asserting a constitutional right at a hearing. Future witnesses learn that invoking the Fifth before a hostile committee can bring a contempt citation and a presidential call for charges.
Why it matters
A president said “maybe” his critic should be prosecuted, to a Justice Department whose attorney general says he answers to the president. Contempt referrals are supposed to be weighed by prosecutors on the law. The president’s voice is now on that discretionary decision, in public.