Newly released text messages from Dr. Anthony Fauci are intensifying scrutiny of what the former White House advisor knew and said during the COVID-19 pandemic — and prompting calls for an investigation with the power to prosecute.
"[A special counsel has] subpoena power. They can have an independent investigation, and then they can prosecute as well," Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., said Tuesday on "Fox & Friends."
"All Congress can do is expose the truth or try to expose the truth, which is hard to do when a guy takes the 5th 111 times," he added.
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Marshall also floated a full 9/11-style commission as another possibility, though he acknowledged the decision ultimately rests with the attorney general.
A retired obstetrician, Marshall has long clashed with Fauci over COVID-19 origins, pandemic policies and the government's vaccine guidance, challenging the former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) director both as a senator and a physician.
His latest criticism centers on a newly released tranche of text messages between Fauci and other top health officials discussing questions surrounding the COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy.
During the back and forth, Fauci appeared to admit he had concerns about the impact of mRNA vaccines on pregnant women.
"I asked around a bit more and another issue came up that you need to be aware of," Fauci wrote in a message dated January 2021.
"Since many people have significant cytokines storm and fever after the 2nd dose, this theoretically could be associated with miscarriage in the 1st trimester."
The following month, Fauci publicly claimed no pregnancy-related "reg flags" were linked to the COVID-19 vaccine.
"With thousands of women who are pregnant, having gotten the vaccine following the EUA [emergency use authorization], there have been no red flags of anything that anyone would be worried about," he told CBS News at the time.
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"There are severe adverse outcomes for mother and baby during COVID-19 infection. Therefore, it is extremely important for pregnant women and women planning to get pregnant to get vaccinated," he said later that same year.
Fox News Digital previously contacted the law firm representing Fauci and did not immediately hear back.
Fox News' Alex Miller contributed to this report.
