3 GOP States Investigate Fauci

Louisiana's top prosecutor has become the third Republican attorney general to move against Dr. Anthony Fauci. Liz Murrill announced Saturday that her office will investigate the former White House medical adviser, days after a tense Senate hearing in which Fauci repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when questioned by GOP senators about the COVID-19 response. Murrill said that Louisiana and Missouri have previously deposed Fauci and that "contemporaneous records he kept" are now emerging, prompting her to look at whether any potential offenses could be pursued in state court, the Hill reports.

Florida and Alabama have launched similar investigations, with Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier citing what he described as Fauci's "lack of candor" to Congress. The hearing itself stretched for hours as Republicans aired grievances over pandemic policies and Fauci declined to respond. The scrutiny intensified after Sen. Rand Paul released more than 1,000 pages of Fauci's personal diary entries and work records, which Fauci has described as an effort to "embarrass and intimidate" him. Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, a Republican, posted his support of the investigations, per NOLA.com.