Despite his retirement from public service, U.S. tax dollars are being spent on protective details for Dr. Anthony Fauci and his family – courtesy of U.S. Marshals, documents obtained by Jesse Watters Primetime reveal.
The Health and Human Services was set to end its protection of Fauci, and the U.S. Marshals assumed protective responsibilities on Jan. 5, 2023, per an agreement with the National Institutes of Health.
FILE: Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Chief Medical Advisor to the President, gives an update on the Omicron COVID-19 variant during the daily press briefing at the White House on December 01, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Emails reviewed by Fox News show a brief correspondence with the White House concerning Dr. Fauci’s parking during a visit on Feb. 1, 2023. The nature of the visit was not clear.
In another email, a redacted name from the U.S. Marshals responds to three individuals at the NIAID/NIH, telling them that “inappropriate communications referring to Dr. Fauci” can be sent to the Justice Department.
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The revelations come after Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., sent a letter last month to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, his department’s Inspector General, and the current head of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Paul requested “additional information regarding Dr. Fauci’s employment status and receipt of taxpayer-funded benefits.”
“While many interpreted these statements to mean Dr. Fauci would be ending his employment with the federal government in December 2022, it is not clear if that is in fact the case,” Paul wrote.
Dr. Anthony Fauci was questioned by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., during a Senate committee hearing Thursday, June 16, 2022. (Senate Video Pool)
“This raises questions about Dr. Fauci’s current employment status and whether he is still receiving certain taxpayer-funded benefits associated with active public service, such as legal counsel and protective services,” the senator added.
A Capitol Hill source previously told Fox News Digital that the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee – of which Paul is the top Republican – was meant to be notified whether Fauci’s security status ended at the end of his employment with the administration, or if was extended somehow. The source said the panel has not heard anything from the administration six months after Fauci said he was done.
Dr. Fauci, who led the NIAID and was the highest-paid bureaucrat on the federal government’s payroll, announced his retirement in August 2022, after more than five decades in office.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Fauci became a household name and the subject of partisan attacks. He made frequent appearances on television news and at daily press conferences. He officially stepped down in December 2022.
In his letter last month, Sen. Paul, who has had a combative relationship with Dr. Fauci, said was “not clear” if Dr. Fauci would indeed be ending his employment with the federal government.
“This raises questions about Dr. Fauci’s current status and whether he is still receiving certain taxpayer-funded benefits associated with active public service, such as legal counsel and protective services,” the senator wrote.
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Paul’s letter also asked whether Dr. Fauci still had access to non-public government facilities and if he is getting any legal or security services from the government.
Fox News’ Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
