Sen. Ron Johnson says entrenched HHS career staff are blocking efforts to untangle what happened during the pandemic, after investigators finally got their hands on Dr. Anthony Fauci’s government-issued phone. The device produced tens of thousands of texts and hundreds of voicemails, and the early releases have already raised sharp questions about vaccine guidance and agency transparency.
Johnson has been blunt about the obstacle course inside HHS, arguing that long-serving employees are not cooperating with a full accounting. He told Fox News Digital he believed those officials were resisting efforts to surface records and context for the public.
“Again, we don’t know what we don’t know,” Johnson said. “We don’t know what HHS has. Bobby Kennedy doesn’t know what HHS has.”
The Senate panel received a copy of Fauci’s personal work phone as part of an investigation into his role at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The device reportedly contained more than 34,000 text messages and 522 voicemails, a trove Johnson says could reshape what the public understands about pandemic decision making.
The first tranche of messages included exchanges with Dr. Rochelle Walensky and Dr. Vivek Murthy, and those texts flagged real medical concerns that weren’t widely known. One message from Fauci warned about the possible effects of the second mRNA shot on early pregnancy, an issue now central to questions about informed consent.
“I asked around a bit more and another issue came up that you need to be aware of,” Fauci wrote. “Since many people have significant cytokines storm and fever after the 2nd dose, this theoretically could be associated with miscarriage in the 1st trimester.”
Johnson described the initial disclosure as just the tip of the iceberg, but he’s tempering public dumps to protect third-party privacy and avoid unnecessary harm. He insists the move to release messages was driven by public safety and the public’s right to know, not political theater.
He said the decision was grounded in immediate concern: Fauci’s note “immediately impacts public safety, immediately impacts informed consent.” That line, Johnson argues, makes it imperative for investigators to sift through the rest of the phone’s contents and keep the public informed.
Beyond the medical snippets, Johnson says the phone suggests broader failures inside HHS during the pandemic and raises questions about who knew what and when. He has highlighted the reality that many agency staffers have been in place for years and, he claims, were part of a system that resisted transparency.
“I mean, fortunately, now we have Bobby Kennedy, I think gaining a little bit more control over the agency,” Johnson said. “Remember, most of the people serving in these agencies have been there a long time, and they were involved in the cover-up. They were supposed to be surveilling for vaccine injuries and they weren’t.”
Johnson added that even with new leadership, internal pushback has been fierce, and efforts to pry open files have felt like an uphill fight. “So, you know, Bobby Kennedy has people in those agencies sabotaging his efforts at radical transparency,” he said, and he warned that accessing records “is like pulling teeth.”
“So this is like pulling teeth. So, I mean, I did not know they had government-issued phones. They’ve been sitting there, locked away somewhere,” he said, emphasizing how long critical materials may have been inaccessible. Those are exactly the kinds of obstacles Republicans say they must expose to restore accountability.
As Johnson’s committee continues its review, the unfolding disclosures promise more difficult questions about federal health agencies and pandemic-era choices. HHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Darnell Thompkins is a Canadian-born American and conservative opinion writer who brings a unique perspective to political and cultural discussions. Passionate about traditional values and individual freedoms, Darnell’s commentary reflects his commitment to fostering meaningful dialogue. When he’s not writing, he enjoys watching hockey and celebrating the sport that connects his Canadian roots with his American journey.