White House press secretary Kaleigh McEnany said Dr. Anthony Fauci would not be testifying before the House because the request was made in poor faith.
Fauci, who is the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was approved to testify before the Republican-controlled Senate, but not before the Democratic-controlled House. During a press conference on Wednesday, McEnany said the House did not come forward with enough information for the White House to allow the testimony.
“It’s important to note that Dr. Fauci will be testifying for the Senate, which means he will be fielding questions from both Democrats and Republicans,” McEnany said. “The House, however, and specifically Chairwoman Nita Lowey’s committee, did not act in good faith.”
McEnany said that Lowey, a New York Democrat who chairs the House Committee on Appropriations, spoke with White House chief of staff Mark Meadows three times. Pence requested details about the hearing, which Lowey said she would provide. McEnany said she announced that she had been denied by the White House before providing that information.
“[Meadows] said in the three phone calls, you know, ‘What is the purpose of this hearing? Can you give me subject matter?’ and Lowey was unable to tell the chief of staff with the subject matter was. The last phone call they had was at 10:46 p.m. on that evening, and Lowey agreed to follow up in the morning with details,” McEnany said.
“Those details were never received,” she continued. “Instead, we got a press release. That’s what we call a publicity stunt. We encourage the House to act in good faith, much like the Senate.”
McEnany was later asked a follow-up question as to whether the House deserves to play a role in oversight of the executive branch. She said that the House can provide oversight if it acts “in good faith.”
“We don’t have time in the middle of a pandemic for publicity stunts,” she said. “It’s not the time for that. It’s not the place for that. And, in the course of three phone calls, you should be able to give the subject matter to ensure it’s the best use of Dr. Fauci’s time.”
