Senator Rand Paul says a contempt of Congress referral against Dr Anthony Fauci will be hand-delivered to the Justice Department and the US Attorney for the District of Columbia on Thursday, bypassing a full Senate vote that would be unlikely to secure the sixty votes needed to advance.
The move follows a party-line vote by the Senate Homeland Security Committee to hold the former government infectious disease chief in contempt, after he invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination more than a hundred times during testimony.
Dr Fauci's lawyer has called the proceedings a crude political stunt designed to punish his client for exercising his constitutional rights.
James Gooderson reports from Washington.
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James Gooderson, our reporter in Washington, says while a contempt conviction could carry serious penalties, it remains unclear how aggressively the White House will pursue the case.
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