Whereas President Biden praised Dr. Anthony Fauci on Monday following the announcement Fauci was stepping down as director of the Nationwide Institute of Allergy and Infectious Ailments (NIAID), Home Republicans vowed to make the White Home chief medical adviser reply for what they referred to as a “disastrous tenure.”
On Monday, Fauci introduced he could be leaving each the Nationwide Institutes of Well being and the Biden administration to “pursue the following chapter” in his profession.
“Whereas I’m transferring on from my present positions, I’m not retiring,” he mentioned. “After greater than 50 years of presidency service, I plan to pursue the following section of my profession whereas I nonetheless have a lot power and fervour for my subject.”
Fauci, 81, had served as a high infectious ailments professional below seven US presidents however was largely unknown till the onset of COVID-19 in March 2020. He has since come below fireplace after the NIH admitted final 12 months it had funded so-called “gain-of-function” research at a lab in Wuhan, China, the place the virus first emerged.
Fauci, who repeatedly denied that such research took place, was accused of mendacity by his GOP critics, most notably Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky.
The medical adviser has additionally been criticized for downplaying the origins of COVID-19, regardless of having been warned early on that the virus might have been “engineered.”
“Whereas I’m certain your retirement will comprise maskless baseball video games, extra photograph shoots, a Netflix documentary, & most likely a contributorship on CNN — retirement from the government’ does NOT imply you’ll get off scot-free,” Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) tweeted. “The @HouseGOP has A LOT of questions, be able to reply them.”
“Dr. Fauci is conveniently resigning from his place in December earlier than Home Republicans have a possibility to carry him accountable for destroying our nation over these previous three years,” Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs wrote. “This man is a coward.”
“Make no mistake, my colleagues and I’ll maintain Dr. Fauci accountable whether or not or not he stays in public workplace,” Biggs added in a second post.
“So Dr. Fauci is stepping down in December,” tweeted Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.). “That gained’t cease a Republican Congress from telling the reality about his disastrous tenure and holding him accountable for the errors he made and the lies he informed.”
Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) additionally chimed in, saying, “Republicans should stay dedicated to holding Fauci accountable even after he steps down to ensure nobody in his place ever abuses the general public belief once more.”
“Retirement can’t protect Dr. Fauci from congressional oversight,” Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, the highest Republican on the Home Oversight Committee, said Monday.
“The American folks deserve transparency and accountability about how authorities officers used their taxpayer {dollars}, and @GOPoversight will ship.”
Rep. Pat Fallon (R-Texas) echoed that sentiment by simply tweeting, “Retirement can’t save Dr. Fauci from Congressional investigation.”
In the meantime, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) used Fauci’s personal phrases when reflecting on his announcement, writing, “Dr. Fauci’s ‘subsequent chapter’ will contain testifying earlier than the Home Oversight Committee.”
One other Texas Republican, Rep. Troy Nehls, urged the physician to “protect” his information, indicating {that a} Republican Home majority would instantly name Fauci as much as Capitol Hill starting subsequent 12 months.
“Protect your information and don’t delete any emails. A time of reckoning will come,” the Texas lawmaker wrote. “We’ll see you in January.”
“Wonderful. He’ll have an open schedule when a Republican majority subpoenas him in January,” Rep. Man Reschenthaler (R-Pa.) agreed.
Florida Republican Daniel Webster additionally referred to as for accountability, tweeting, “When Republicans achieve majority, we are going to use our constitutional oversight authority to carry the Biden Administration, together with Dr. Fauci, accountable.”
