Anthony Fauci's ideas "were crazy. I inherited him, but as time went on, I trusted him less and less. He made too many bad decisions, like the one on masks." Donald Trump wrote this on his social media account, once again attacking the renowned immunologist, the leading figure in the fight against Covid in the United States, on the day of his hearing before the Senate Homeland Security Committee, chaired by Republican Rand Paul, convened to shed light on the pandemic.

"Operation Warp Speed was a resounding success, with many saying it was one of the most successful initiatives ever undertaken by an American president. I overruled Fauci on this point: his ideas were insane!" Trump wrote. "From the beginning, I stated that the virus came from a laboratory in Wuhan, China. Fauci strongly disagreed, always trying to protect China," Trump added, emphasizing that he did not "allow Fauci to lock down the country." "Fauci was essentially sidelined until Joe Biden came along and made him a king. I called Biden to tell him that Fauci was no good: either he didn't understand anything or he was dishonest," Trump continued. "My point was well received but, sadly, it was not followed up. Biden ended up giving Fauci enormous and destructive power."

During the hearing, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases refused to answer questions about the origins of COVID-19, invoking the Fifth Amendment , accusing Committee Chairman Paul of harboring an "unbalanced obsession with me" before invoking his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself. Paul repeatedly stated that he believed the scientist should be in prison, reporting him to the Department of Justice for criminal prosecution. He accused him of funding the research that triggered the pandemic in China and then lying to Congress about it: charges for which there is no evidence and which Fauci has always denied. In his brief opening statement, within the five-minute time allotted to him, Fauci noted that he had testified before Congress more than 200 times during his 38 years as head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, including during the COVID-19 outbreak.