House COVID hearing goes off the rails as Marjorie Taylor Greene attacks Dr. Fauci

A House Oversight Committee hearing about COVID response and origins devolved into chaos Monday as a number of GOP lawmakers attacked former White House chief medical officer Dr. Anthony Fauci.

Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene went on the offensive during the testimony from Fauci, who retired in January 2022, refusing to call him “doctor” and outrageously saying he should be imprisoned for “crimes against humanity.”

Greene, who frequently rails against vaccines and other precautions, began her questioning with an accusation that Fauci signed off on medical experiments akin to the “torture of the animals” when he was the director of the National Institutes of Health despite the fact he never held that role. Fauci was the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for 38 years.

“As a dog lover, I want to tell you this is disgusting and evil,” Greene raved while holding up images of canines involved in experiments without providing any context about them. “So the type of science that you are representing, Mr. Fauci, is abhorrent! And it needs to stop.”

She then claimed Fauci “made up” COVID guidelines like social distancing and masking. He countered that the guidance came from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, explaining they were put in place before it was known the virus was airborne and not only spread by droplets.

Greene then asked about how much money NIH received from pharmaceutical companies since the start of the pandemic while continuing to question his credentials.

“Do the American people deserve to be abused like that, Mr. Fauci? Because you’re not ‘doctor.’ You’re Mr. Fauci in my few minutes,” she said. “No, I don’t need your answer.”

After Democrats on the committee objected, Greene doubled down and accused Fauci of an unspecific crime.

“Yes, because in my time, that man does not deserve to have a (medical) license!” Greene bellowed. “As a matter of fact, it should be revoked and he belongs in prison!”

At one point during another lawmaker’s questioning, Greene muttered Fauci was “not respected,” leading Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, to read the committee’s rules of decorum and remind Greene to refer to Fauci as a doctor.

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