Anthony Fauci, the former top US infectious disease expert, declined to answer questions at a Senate hearing on Wednesday, invoking his constitutional right against self-incrimination and accusing Republican Senator Rand Paul of an "unhinged" campaign to see him imprisoned.
Fauci, who is 85 and retired in 2022, was subpoenaed by Paul of Kentucky, the chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and a longtime adversary.
Fauci accused Paul of an "unhinged" campaign to see him imprisoned, and refused to answer more than 100 questions.
Paul said Fauci was not allowed to plead the Fifth Amendment right to refrain from answering senators' questions, that a pardon from former President Joe Biden would not protect him, and that there would be consequences for refusing to answer.
He said the committee had scheduled a vote for next week to hold Fauci in contempt.
