EXCLUSIVE — The principal congressman in charge of the investigation into the origins of COVID-19 said he is stunned that Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, showed little contrition in testimony this week for his role in pandemic-era public health policy.
“We kept hearing apologies to Dr. Fauci. We never got one from him. And I think it would have really helped the country,” Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Chairman Brad Wenstrup (R-OH) told the Washington Examiner in an exclusive interview following the explosive public testimony with the former top government infectious disease doctor.
Wenstrup’s subcommittee has taken over 15 months to investigate the origins of the virus as well as various public health measures taken during the pandemic, including face masking, social distancing, and vaccine mandates. The investigation culminated on Monday with the first public testimony of the former NIAID director since his retirement in December 2022.
Democrats on the select subcommittee repeatedly apologized to Fauci for the questioning of his nearly 40-year legacy at the National Institutes of Health, including during his advisory role to both the Trump and Biden administrations during the pandemic.
Wenstrup said he was surprised that Fauci showed “no remorse for any of the harm that has come from some of the rules and regulations and mandates, and especially things that weren’t based on science.”
Fauci testified in a transcribed interview before the select subcommittee in January that there was no evidence to support mask mandates for children or the six-feet social distancing rules that were put in place in schools and public places prior to the development of the vaccine.
During Monday’s hearing, Fauci reiterated his impression that six-feet social distancing rules “just sort of appeared” but said that the NIH was not responsible for the guidance on distancing or masks.
“It was [the CDC’s] decision to make, and they made it,” Fauci said on Monday. “It is not appropriate to be publicly challenging a sister organization.”
Wenstrup, a former military physician, told the Washington Examiner that although there was much uncertainty during the first year of the pandemic, the appropriate measure would have been to be honest with the public that six feet was an approximation or guess.
When asked if it may have been reasonable for public health leaders in the executive branch, including Fauci, to shield the public from certain scientific uncertainties during the early stages of the pandemic, he said transparent communication ought to dictate doctor-patient conversations in all circumstances.
“As a doctor, you don’t do that with the patient. If there’s something to fear here, you just have to have some good bedside manner,” Wenstrup said. “We had horrible bedside manner.”
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Although the origins of the virus were a focus in Monday’s hearing, Wenstrup said the most important aspect moving forward is trying to rebuild public trust in public health agencies and recommendations.
“We can talk about the origins of COVID and things like that all day long,” Wenstrup said, “but if you’re looking at why we don’t trust our public health system, we have plenty of reasons and we’re finding those out.”