Bill Maher criticized Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) Friday over the lawmaker’s decision to release more than 1,000 pages of Dr. Anthony Fauci’s private diary.
“New rule: Stop threatening to put everyone in jail who you just don’t like,” the comedian said on “Real Time.” “The way Senator Rand Paul is trying to do now with Dr. Anthony Fauci, who is back in the news because Senator Paul, formerly of the ‘privacy is everything’ wing of the Republican party, got hold of Dr. Fauci’s personal diary and published all of it.”
Paul released the diary ahead of Fauci facing questions before a Senate committee last month. The conservative senator spearheaded an investigation into the former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paul stated in 2023 that Fauci belonged behind bars “without question,” accusing him of lying about the virus’ origins.
“Rand, babe, your entire brand is ’Senator Right to Privacy,” Maher continued. “You’re the libertarian guy, the Fourth Amendment guy. It’s your family legacy. Your entire political career has been about warning us about government overreach.”
He quipped that Rand publishing the diary would be like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) “wearing a gown that says tax the poor” — a reference to the “tax the rich” dress the progressive lawmaker wore to the 2021 Met Gala.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the diary entries were made on a government computer and that he gave them to Paul as part of the investigation. Their release has sparked public scrutiny and derision, including over Fauci’s musings on his own rising fame amid the pandemic.
In his segment, Maher said that while Fauci has made some mistakes, he was “very, very far away” from being a criminal.
“Dr. Fauci, depending on your politics, is either an esteemed, dedicated public servant or a vain, flawed bureaucrat,” he said. “Well, it’s both.”