You know your legal strategy is going swimmingly when a lawyer who was literally appointed by Barack Obama goes on CNN to tell the world you just made everything worse. That is precisely what happened when Ryan Goodman, an NYU law professor and former Obama Defense Department counsel, told Erin Burnett that Anthony Fauci's decision to invoke the Fifth Amendment 111 times was, shall we say, not ideal. As USA Journal reported, Goodman put it bluntly: "I think it makes it worse."
Now let's walk through the comedy of errors here. Joe Biden issued Fauci a pardon that, if it holds up, covers all of his conduct prior to January 2025. That means he cannot face criminal prosecution for anything he did before that date. And if you cannot be prosecuted, you cannot incriminate yourself. And if you cannot incriminate yourself, then the Fifth Amendment is about as useful as a screen door on a submarine. Goodman spelled this out in terms so simple that even Congress could follow along: "He does not face criminal jeopardy for the pardon."
So why on earth would Fauci clam up 111 times when he has no valid constitutional basis for doing so? Well, here is where it gets spicy. Florida has launched a state investigation into Fauci, and guess what Biden's federal pardon covers at the state level? Absolutely nothing. Zero. Zilch. Nada.
So Fauci's legal brain trust apparently decided that eating a potential federal contempt charge was a better deal than freely testifying and having those words show up later in a Florida courtroom. If that calculation is correct, it tells you something fascinating: Fauci's own lawyers apparently do not believe the pardon gives him the bulletproof protection it seems to offer on paper. Nobody refuses to talk when they are genuinely protected. You only zip your lips when you suspect there are holes in the armor, whether that is state charges, questions about the autopen signature on the pardon, potential perjury exposure, or conduct that falls outside the pardon's reach.
Senator Rand Paul, who has been waiting for this moment like a kid on Christmas morning, already has a contempt vote on the schedule for next week. The legal framework that Goodman described lines up perfectly with what Paul is constructing.
Meanwhile, Fauci showed up to the hearing flanked by security, read a prepared opening statement about his illustrious career, and then proceeded to invoke his Fifth Amendment rights one hundred and eleven separate times. That is roughly once every thirty seconds if you are keeping score at home.
So to recap the current situation: an Obama appointee says the strategy backfired, a contempt vote is coming, Florida is investigating, the courts are examining whether the pardon signature is even valid, and Fauci sat there repeating the same phrase more times than a broken GPS. "Science" definitely had a rough Tuesday.
Read more conservative news commentary at: USA Journal News
