Infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci is facing questions from the House Select Committee on the Coronavirus Pandemic on Monday — marking his first Congressional testimony as a non-government official since stepping down in 2022.
Dr Fauci led the US’s response the Covid-19 pandemic, a role that earned him both praise and scrutiny alike. He is expected to face grilling from Congressional Republicans over the origins of the virus as well as transparency around government agency communications and records.
The former head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) is sitting for his first congressional testimony in almost two years.
The GOP-led subcommittee has requested access to Dr Fauci’s personal email and phone records after obtaining information, which, they say, calls into question whether he may have attempted to conceal some records.
Dr Fauci is appearing voluntarily on Monday. He has said that he has “nothing to hide.”
The divide between the Democrats and Republicans approach to the hearing is striking. One Democrat called this effort a “waste of time” while Republicans have pressed Fauci about conspiracies that have cropped up about the origins of Covid, including the lab leak theory and Fauci’s alleged ‘cover up’.
