By Emily KoppFormer Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment Wednesday in response to questions from Republican Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul about the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. “On advice of counsel I respectfully decline to answer based upon my rights under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution,” Fauci repeatedly said in response to Paul’s questions. That prompted repeated outbursts by Fauci’s attorney, who was subsequently removed by Capitol Police from the hearing. Finally, Paul asked whether Fauci still felt that the benefits of gain-of-function research were worth the risks, as he wrote in a 2012 editorial in The Washington Post. Paul pressed Fauci on whether that worst case scenario had occurred, but did not get an answer.