18 minutes ago, SiSePuede419 said:

Well, so is Todd Blanche but he has no idea why lawyers like things in writing, not just verbally. 😭

Republican Lawyers seem to not understand some very basic things.

So, no way am I listening to that moron Hawley who likes to runs away from danger like a little girl 👍

Blanche stated orally that the Department of Justice is dropping the payout plan, but declined to sign formal documents or memos fully rescinding the original settlement agreement.

Attacking Hawley’s character or bringing up Todd Blanche doesn't change basic constitutional law.

Hawley’s point about the 5th Amendment isn't a partisan opinion—it's established Supreme Court precedent (Brown v. Walker).

The Fifth Amendment protects against self-incrimination leading to criminal prosecution. When a full, unconditional pardon removes all risk of legal prosecution, the constitutional privilege against taking the stand legally disappears. You can't claim protection from a danger that no longer legally exists.

As for Blanche and written documents.

In federal practice, an oral statement by an officer of the court or DOJ representative can bind an agency, but demanding a formal written rescission is basic administrative law, not incompetence.

Until a formal administrative order or court filing is executed, an oral promise leaves room for future policy shifts or legal gray areas.

Insisting on signed documentation isn't 'not understanding basic things'—it's standard legal due diligence to ensure an agreement is legally binding and enforceable in court.

4 hours ago, sqwakvfr said:

Rand Paul is one issue in this but for Fauci:

Executive Grant of Clemency

JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR.

President of the United States of America

TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, GREETING:

BE IT KNOWN, THAT THIS DAY, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR., PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED

STATES, PURSUANT TO MY POWERS UNDER ARTICLE II, SECTION 2, CLAUSE 1, OF THE

CONSTITUTION, HAVE GRANTED UNTO

DR. ANTHONY S. FAUCI

A FULL AND UNCONDITIONAL PARDON

This covers anything he did after 2014. I'm not a lawyer but if one has a full and unconditional presidential pardon then why invoke the 5th? Also, in some of the allegations made by Sen Paul statute of limitations from prosecution might apply. If I had full immunity and I am 83 years old then I might have said what I wanted to say.

My understanding is Pardon covers up to date the Pardon is issued. There are some, like Paul who want to catch him now saying something they can charge him with. Dr. Fauci, what color is your tie? No, your stated color answer is not correct ... you are charged with lying to Congress in this investigation! Yes, example far fetched ... point is valid, however.

I am puzzled. Rand Paul got ahold of Fauci's personal diary recounting his thoughts at the time of the pandemic. Fauci could not have known that the diary would be purloined and wrote that COVID was natural.

Seems pretty concise.

Another vid of Josh Hawley, asking Fauci about Covid, but Hawley has the receipts and produces them!

1 hour ago, SiSePuede419 said:

False.

More Cop Memory.

You can't even remember what you said a few minutes ago

Let me refresh your memory

If I had [lied under oath] I would have been prosecuted

Your memory is not exactly much better. Remember "when did I name call"? "Liar"???

"We We Can".

Edited July 30Jul 30 by sqwakvfr

1 hour ago, wwest5829 said:

My understanding is Pardon covers up to date the Pardon is issued. There are some, like Paul who want to catch him now saying something they can charge him with. Dr. Fauci, what color is your tie? No, your stated color answer is not correct ... you are charged with lying to Congress in this investigation! Yes, example far fetched ... point is valid, however.

That just seemed kind of silly. At this point Fauci's "get out of jail" is valid and at 83 he can enjoy the rest of his life. Maybe he can get another cover on InStyle magazine because he looked very dashing with those sunglasses.

Fauci has been preemptively pardoned. Therefore there is no reason for him not to answer, and his refusal to do so is pure contempt of Congress. However, his testimony could put a lot of people in prison. Don't be surprised if Fauci goes the way of Lindsey Graham or Jeffrey Epstein - soon.

Off topic deflection posts about a Trump deposition have been removed.

Contemptible disrespect for science and an eminent medical professional.

5 hours ago, sqwakvfr said:

Rand Paul is one issue in this but for Fauci:

Executive Grant of Clemency

JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR.

President of the United States of America

TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, GREETING:

BE IT KNOWN, THAT THIS DAY, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR., PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED

STATES, PURSUANT TO MY POWERS UNDER ARTICLE II, SECTION 2, CLAUSE 1, OF THE

CONSTITUTION, HAVE GRANTED UNTO

DR. ANTHONY S. FAUCI

A FULL AND UNCONDITIONAL PARDON

This covers anything he did after 2014. I'm not a lawyer but if one has a full and unconditional presidential pardon then why invoke the 5th? Also, in some of the allegations made by Sen Paul statute of limitations from prosecution might apply. If I had full immunity and I am 83 years old then I might have said what I wanted to say.

You must be MAGA to be so naive about how pardons work. A pardon is only applicable to events happening before the pardon is signed, not after. They're only trying to get fauci to say something they will charge him with later. The fifth is the best answer.

Edited July 30Jul 30 by gargamon

Seems like Rand Paul's obsessive contempt case against Dr Fauci will likely fail....

Legal analyst Elie Honig said Dr. Anthony Fauci could still invoke the Fifth Amendment despite receiving a pardon for two main reasons.

First, Honig said Fauci could argue he still faces the theoretical possibility of prosecution under state law, which is enough to support invoking the Fifth Amendment, even if such a case is unlikely.

Second, Honig noted that the pardon only covers conduct through January 20, 2025, meaning it would not protect Fauci from any alleged crimes committed after that date.

Honig said Rand Paul could ask a court to compel Fauci's testimony if he believed the Fifth Amendment claim was invalid but added a judge would likely side with Fauci.

'I think ultimately, Fauci probably has a right to invoke the Fifth here'.


CNN Legal Analyst Elie Honig Says Fauci ‘Probably Within His Rights’ to Take the Fifth — But the ‘Political Fallout’ and ‘Shame’ Is a Separate Issue

Edited July 30Jul 30 by LosLobo

4 hours ago, impulse said:

And every few months, we hear about some virus or bacteria that may trigger the next plandemic.

Perhaps Americans don't want to see a rinse and repeat of probably the most dystopian and expensive evil ever foisted on us. There will be another pandemic. If there are no consequences after the last one (other than Fauci and Pharma getting rich), they'll do it again. Guaranteed.

The next pandemic may occur after Trump's mandate. In this case, no problem of incompetent and erratic crisis management by the POTUS any more! 😂

Edited July 30Jul 30 by candide

2 hours ago, Purdey said:

I am puzzled. Rand Paul got ahold of Fauci's personal diary recounting his thoughts at the time of the pandemic. Fauci could not have known that the diary would be purloined and wrote that COVID was natural.

Seems pretty concise.

Your point about Fauci's contemporaneous belief is moot because there is no conclusive evidence establishing the origin of COVID.

COVID origins remain a mystery after WHO expert investigation | AP News
https://apnews.com/article/covid-origins-animal-lab-leak-china-trump-5e0f66341e440181d7335e3857a3da7a

Edited July 30Jul 30 by LosLobo

3 hours ago, jas007 said:

This fiasco is now history, in a sense, but many people died, many lives were disrupted, and many businesses were ruined.

Perhaps someday the truth will emerge. It shouldn't be swept under the rug.

Exactly! Trump should have been subponaed about it! 😄

3 hours ago, Smokey and the Bandit said:

Interesting take on the hearing by Josh Hawley, who is in fact a lawyer..

Aaah the good old memories! 😀

9 hours ago, SiSePuede419 said:

Hypothesis: The number one issue in America today is not affordable housing and healthcare, jobs, immigration, crime, drugs, deficit spending or government corruption–its the lack of people asking GOTCHA questions.

I'm so happy Republicans are so concerned about everyday Americans' top issue in 2026.

Immigrants? War? Growing Federal Deficit? Crime? Rising prices for housing and healthcare? NO WAY JOSE! Ask Fauci “What color is the carpet”?

Concerns about money and foreign influence corrupting the government?

NOPE! Ask Fauci “What day is it today?”

“What does your tie represent today?

^^^ This is what Americans are thinking about

It all makes sense now. 😄

Thank God Republicans are finally doing something about the political gridlock and polarization undermining confidence in leadership by asking Fauci about the meaning of his tie!

MY HEROES SO BRAVE AND STRONG 🥰

my fellow labradoodle

I guess you forgot the damaged done to our kids from being absent from school...all for NOTHING. The Swedes are laughing at Americans for being stupid and ignoring science. Fauci is dirty. I was in Thailand when Covid was starting and have a chemistry/engineering background. I saw the graph on morbidity and it was clear that the virus was not going to harm kids....very clear. Yes, this man and those who played politics, were quick to obfuscate evidence and damaged our future kids beyond repair. He gave money to that lab, then tried to cover up the fact that it was leaked. That is why he must be held accountable.

12 minutes ago, LosLobo said:

Your point about Fauci's contemporaneous belief is moot because there is no conclusive evidence establishing the origin of COVID.

COVID origins remain a mystery after WHO expert investigation | AP News
https://apnews.com/article/covid-origins-animal-lab-leak-china-trump-5e0f66341e440181d7335e3857a3da7a

Anyone with basic biology and microbiology know that the virus was leaked from that lab. I used to audit virus labs, so I have an idea on what I am talking about. In addition, the virus was leaked not too long after the Chinese signed the trade agreement with Trump's organization. In America, the focus around that time was the Impeachment of Trump, and folks ignored basic science and the Chinese knew it and played their cards well. Gotta give it to them, they did a number on the USA and ROW. Well done China.

2 minutes ago, Taboo2 said:

I guess you forgot the damaged done to our kids from being absent from school...all for NOTHING. The Swedes are laughing at Americans for being stupid and ignoring science. Fauci is dirty. I was in Thailand when Covid was starting and have a chemistry/engineering background. I saw the graph on morbidity and it was clear that the virus was not going to harm kids....very clear. Yes, this man and those who played politics, were quick to obfuscate evidence and damaged our future kids beyond repair. He gave money to that lab, then tried to cover up the fact that it was leaked. That is why he must be held accountable.

You MAGAs really aren't very bright, are you? Yes kids were unlikely to die from covid. But you need to vaccinate them so they didn't pass it to those with a less robust immune system.

7 minutes ago, Taboo2 said:

Anyone with basic biology and microbiology know that the virus was leaked from that lab. I used to audit virus labs, so I have an idea on what I am talking about. In addition, the virus was leaked not too long after the Chinese signed the trade agreement with Trump's organization. In America, the focus around that time was the Impeachment of Trump, and folks ignored basic science and the Chinese knew it and played their cards well. Gotta give it to them, they did a number on the USA and ROW. Well done China.

Aaaaĥ! A MAGA conspiracy theory! 🤣

Hey MAGA, just a friendly reminder that trump awarded Dr. Faucci with a medal for his work during Covid.

25 minutes ago, LosLobo said:

Your point about Fauci's contemporaneous belief is moot because there is no conclusive evidence establishing the origin of COVID.

COVID origins remain a mystery after WHO expert investigation | AP News
https://apnews.com/article/covid-origins-animal-lab-leak-china-trump-5e0f66341e440181d7335e3857a3da7a

In addition, the progenitor of Sars-Cov2 has never been identified. So the MAGA claim makes no sense at all! 😆

No known virus, including those used in the US research program, can be at the origin of the Covid virus.

That leaves three possible origins:

• A natural evolution from an unknown virus outside the lab

• A virus collected by the Chinese lab, which was leaked.

• A GoF from a virus kept secret by the Chinese lab, which was leaked

1 hour ago, gargamon said:

You MAGAs really aren't very bright, are you? Yes kids were unlikely to die from covid. But you need to vaccinate them so they didn't pass it to those with a less robust immune system.

You were obviously not informed that at the large inquiry held in Europe, Pfizer admitted that the vaccine was never tested for how it stopped spreading the virus, only how effective it was for keeping you from dying. So all this talk about protecting grandma and grandpa was apparently bogus.

Posts with content from unapproved social media sources have been removed:

• We do not accept content from social media platforms unless it originates from a credible, professional, and qualified source.

Just a reminder that trump was a champion of social distancing and mask use as I see MAGA posters on here seem to be suffering from a collective and selective memory loss.

35 minutes ago, Globalres said:

You were obviously not informed that at the large inquiry held in Europe, Pfizer admitted that the vaccine was never tested for how it stopped spreading the virus, only how effective it was for keeping you from dying. So all this talk about protecting grandma and grandpa was apparently bogus.

'Not tested for transmission' does not mean 'did not reduce transmission' — that conclusion is a non sequitur.

No vaccine stops spread 100%. The question was whether it reduced risk — not whether it created a perfect shield.

44 minutes ago, Globalres said:

You were obviously not informed that at the large inquiry held in Europe, Pfizer admitted that the vaccine was never tested for how it stopped spreading the virus, only how effective it was for keeping you from dying. So all this talk about protecting grandma and grandpa was apparently bogus.

The vaccine shortens the time during which a host can be contagious.

12 hours ago, webfact said:

Anthony Fauci refused to answer questions at a tense US Senate hearing on the origins of Covid-19, saying he feared Republicans would use his testimony to pursue allegations of perjury.

This whole Covid thing is a diversion used by the hjighest level of politicians in the USA, from both parties, to deflect from the true issues... and Americans are lapping this up as if it would be a live-and-death issue for them today.

For nobody else on the planet is this still an issue, which shows, how truly "exceptional" Americans are.

This, dear Americans, was the opposite of a compliment.

8 hours ago, TheFishman1 said:

The doctor is a man of science they should subpoena Trump in so he could explain his theory about drinking bleach he knew about it he did nothing about it he didn’t care that thousands of Americans were dying from it all he cares about is his own wallet TIA

They would never do that because they're spineless and too frightened of him. As the US has gradually been Putinised, the 'Grand' Old Party has become a cohort of servile, genuflecting when not groveling, disgraceful in the eyes of the Constitution, pack of apparatchiks.

They are more concerned with their mortgages than with their mortgaging of what there was of US democracy.

4 hours ago, gargamon said:

You must be MAGA to be so naive about how pardons work. A pardon is only applicable to events happening before the pardon is signed, not after. They're only trying to get fauci to say something they will charge him with later. The fifth is the best answer.

That's what I said??? No such a thing as a "get out of jail card for any future actions? My point is since he has immunity for anything he did or said between 2014 and 2024 then if he testifies truthfully at the July 29 hearing then no fuss and no consequence. Is this clear enough or I am "so naive"? I never said Fauci would be immune for any testimony on July 29 since he had a pardon that covers from 2014 to 2024.

Edited July 30Jul 30 by sqwakvfr

Fauci is an educated scientist. Paul is an optician - sorry, ophthalmologist.

Fauci pointed out from the start that he has given testimony previously with the same questions and answers. He knows very well that Paul is waiting for a stupid gotcha moment and refused to play that game. Good for him.