Anthony Fauci refused to answer questions before a Senate committee, deepening suspicion over what he knew about COVID's origins — bad for his reputation and for public trust.

• Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment for nearly every question, even trivial ones like the color of his tie.
• Republicans argued he has no Fifth Amendment claim because Biden preemptively pardoned him before leaving office.
• Newly released diary entries, written on a government computer, suggest Fauci privately doubted the wet-market origin story early on while publicly mocking lab-leak believers as conspiracy theorists.
• The likely reason for staying silent: talking could expose him to perjury charges the pardon does not cover.
• Democrats and a letter from 155 scientists defended Fauci, framing him as a target of Trump-era harassment, turning a life-and-death issue into a partisan fight.

Outlook: With the pardon shielding him from prosecution, expect more political battles over COVID's origins and gain-of-function funding, but little chance of legal consequences for Fauci.