TALLAHASSEE, Florida (LifeSiteNews) — Florida Republican Attorney General James Uthmeier announced on Wednesday that his office is launching its own investigation into former White House coronavirus czar Dr. Anthony Fauci, to determine whether state-level charges can be brought against any of the actions for which he has been federally pardoned.

Fauci had been called before the Senate Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee, where he invoked the Fifth Amendment (which protects the right not to give self-incriminating testimony) more than 100 times in response to a battery of questions about his role in the federal COVID response, the differences between his public pronouncements and actual private knowledge, and the origins of the virus.

Just before leaving office in January 2025, former President Joe Biden pardoned Fauci for anything he may have done between January 2014 and the end of Biden’s presidency, leaving national Republicans divided on what, if anything, can and should still be done to hold him accountable.

However, the presidential pardon power only applies to federal offenses, leaving Fauci potentially vulnerable to hypothetical state charges.

“Fauci’s lack of candor to Congress is unbelievable,” Uthmeier announced. “My office is launching an investigation into Dr. Fauci. It’s past time we get the truth of what happened during COVID.”

“If he lied, and it resulted in physical and economic harm to countless Americans, billions of taxpayer dollars in ‘medical expenses,’ and learning-loss for our next generation, there should be accountability,” he continued, adding that his office would be working with Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) “to get the truth.”

However, it will not be straightforward to build a case that any of Fauci’s actions for the federal government (which primarily had him in Washington, DC, and Bethesda, Maryland) fall under Florida jurisdiction. The Sunshine State’s Gov. Ron DeSantis, who rose to national prominence opposing the lockdowns, attempted to temper expectations on The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show Wednesday.

“I would just tell people, I would not hold your breath that you’re going to see any type of major accountability,” he said. “I just think there was a window for that. I’m not sure that window is open in a real meaningful way at this point. I hope I’m wrong about that. Don’t get me wrong.”

Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases (NIAID), was once a relatively obscure health official, but became a household name during the 2020 COVID outbreak, lionized in the media but soon developing a record of deep credibility issues.

In February 2020, Fauci said there was “absolutely no reason whatsoever to wear a mask” in the United States; by July, he was arguing that Americans wear not only masks, but goggles and face shields (overwhelming evidence has established that COVID masking was ineffective).

Critics also faulted Fauci for suggesting that handshaking should be abolished yet sexual activity with strangers remains alright if “you’re willing to take a risk,” and championing COVID shot mandates despite being unwilling or unable to give a “firm answer” on why the shots are necessary for those with immunity from prior infection. In January 2024, he admitted under oath that the pervasive six-foot “social distancing” rule was “likely not based on any data” and “just sort of appeared.”

But arguably the biggest mark on Fauci’s record was his approval of federal funding to explore gain-of-function (GOF) research, which entails intentionally strengthening viruses to study their effects, at several sites, including China’s controversial Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), where evidence indicates COVID-19 may have originally leaked from. Leaked emails have revealed that Fauci and other top researchers were aware of the lab-leak possibility as early as February 2020, but attempted to discredit it as they feared that publicly acknowledging the theory would impair “science and international harmony.”

Paul has advocated that the Justice Department prosecute Fauci for lying to Congress on this and other COVID matters, despite Biden’s pardon. Paul argues that the attempt should be made regardless, so the courts can decide whether or not to uphold the pardon in light of questions about Biden’s mental capacity and decision-making ability in his last days in office. 

When asked about the matter on Wednesday, President Donald Trump said that “he was pardoned by Biden and I respect that. I know how powerful it is.” Despite having frequently railed against Biden’s “auto-pen” presidency, Trump acknowledged that “you have to have a lot of proof” in order to reverse a presidential pardon.

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