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Chris Cuomo
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Rand Paul
The American people would like to understand your reasoning, your rationale for why you chose to fund the research in Wuhan. There have been, you know, intelligence agencies, the CIA, the FBI, the DOE have all come to the conclusion that more likely than not, the virus came from the lab in Wuhan. And so we'd like to know what was the rationale? What was the discussion? What went behind the decision to fund the research in Wuhan? How did you come to the conclusion that a totalitarian country would be capable of doing this in a VSL2 lab, a lab that lacked the security? What was the reasoning? And are you sorry, basically, for making the decision? Would you give it another chance, say, well, gosh, circumstances now as I know it, maybe it wasn't a wise thing. Can you explain to the committee why you chose to fund this dangerous research in China? On the advice of counsel, I respectfully
Chris Cuomo
decline to answer based upon my rights
Rand Paul
under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution.
Chris Cuomo
That's it. Time to turn the hat around. This is the first step in the road to ruin for Tony Fauci's reputation. But I'm telling you right now, this isn't what the midterms are going to be about. This is completely never going to move the needle. And this clip is going to get more attention for how attractive the blonde woman is over Rand Paul's shoulder than it is about anything that just came out of his mouth. And that's how stupid our politics has become. But I'll tell you the truth about what they want to get out of Tony Fauci, and I'll tell you the truth about what is going to matter a lot more to whoever wants to win the midterms. I'm Chris Cuomo. Welcome to the Chris Cuomo Project. Look, I know Tony Fauci. I know his answers to these questions. I like Tony Fauci. I respect what he did during the pandemic. I told Tony Fauci at that time, I tony, they are setting you up. You should not be the messenger for political decisions. I told him that. Did Tony like it? Sure I'm sure he liked it. Who wouldn't? The sum total of your professional legacy, getting to be out there and doing exactly what you always thought mattered most. And this president gifting you, President Trump, by the way, the guy who was never mentioned in that, and he will never be mentioned, even though he put Foushee front and center. Nobody else had ever done that before. He put him there. He kept him there. He botched the response to the pandemic. He said it was a cold. He said it would be over by Easter. He said it would just be a couple of weeks. Right. He said that the numbers weren't real. He screwed up the ppe. He did Operation Warp Speed. He's the one who told the agencies to shortcut all their processes to get it done. You and. And his people who voted for him celebrated it as the best thing ever. The vaccine was great. They went after Kamala Harris for saying, I'm not taking a vaccine that Donald Trump came up with. And you said, how dare you? But Tony Fauci is the bad guy in the pandemic because what. Here's the allegation, here's the accusation. You created COVID 19. That's the accusation you funded gain of function, which you don't know. You're never even going to know what the fuck that means. Okay? There's three different definitions of it. And here's what it means in the simplest form. That works for me. You start messing with viruses to see what you can make them do, to figure out how to stop them from doing that, if they ever get to that point of doing it. That's what they do. Did it get funded? Yes. Specific to what? We don't know. Is it what created COVID 19? 0% chance. That's what all the government agencies say. That's what everybody who has researched it in any kind of responsible way has said. So if whatever they were doing didn't lead to COVID 19, then what are we talking about? That's what's always bothered me about it. Now, that gets conflated, right, with them not being straight about where the virus came from. Look, whether it came from the lab, unless you're going to show that Tony Fauci funded research that led to COVID 19, and somehow only Tony Fauci is responsible for that. Nobody else had anything to do with it. Then what are we talking about? Well, he didn't want us to know it's from the lab because of the gain of function stuff, because he was covering it up. Where's the proof of that? It's not even in his diary. Oh, well, he says that a lot of the people on the panel who are Looking at it. Think it was that.
Rand Paul
And. Yeah.
Chris Cuomo
And look at their report. There's no proof that he doctored the report. The report's like, we're not sure. We think it may have been a lab leak, but here's why it may not have been. I was asking those questions at the time. Would I go back and do things differently? Hell, yeah, I would. Why? Hindsight's 20 20. That's why. And I know that we made mistakes. That's why I don't believe the vaccine was poisoned. I don't believe it hurt more people than it helped. I don't even think that's a close call. I think that's silly. And it's not said in any other country except ours. It's not curious to you, huh? Not curious to you at all? Okay, fine. So why did I say that? This is the first step on the road to ruin. You plead the fifth, man. It's a bad look. Do I understand why? Yes. Why? Because I'm an attorney. Would I have taken the pardon me personally? No. Why? Because I want to go down fighting, obviously. Right. Look where that got me. You know, I didn't protect myself when I was at cnn and I knew what was coming for me because of perceptions about my brother, and I did it anyway. Okay. Would I do it differently now? No. But I'm an idiot. If I'm Tony Fauci, I take the pardon. Why? Because they're gonna come for you. That's obviously what is going on here. And his lawyers are telling him something now, which is why he pleaded the Fifth and he never has before. And I'll tell you something else. Tony Fauci was encouraged to plead the fifth before this, and he chose not to. He thought his candor would be clarifying. He was wrong. It has never moved the needle for people. Now they believe that these guys are going to try to say that what he is lying about is different than what he has said in the past and he can be prosecuted anew, and his lawyers are worried about it. So he's going to plead the fifth. And they have convinced Tony Fauci that whoever is going to think that this is the first step on the road to ruin for your pedigree already thinks that. So just protect yourself. That's all that matters now. And he is an old man who doesn't have that level of fight in him. I get why he's doing it. It's a bad look. And just so you understand this. And look, it's a powerful distraction, which is why I've talked about it for minutes when I really want to talk to you about something else tonight, because I got poll numbers tonight. I always think I'm on tv, I have poll numbers and I have obvious movements in the electorate that are telling us exactly what this midterm will be about, unless stupid shit can get the way, which is absolutely what the right wants. And I don't like to paint Senator Paul with that brush because I don't think it's fair to him. I think he acts with integrity most of the time. I don't get his penchant for going after Fauci. I really don't. But, you know, he's being very helpful to the MAGA cause in this. And I'm not saying that that's his aim or his ambition. He's never been that before. And I believe he really believes this. I just. I just don't know where he thinks it gets him or us, frankly. But I will tell you that Tony Fauci thinks that this is the right way to play it so that he can end this chapter. And I think it is sad that this is the last chapter of his public kind of timeline, but this is where we are. And he got caught up in the politics and this is always where it was going to end. Always. Not because he did bad things, but because he allowed himself to be the face of the political part of this. And Trump gets a pass, which is unbelievable to me. Unbelievable. And this won't move the needle. And I'm telling you, that clip, you'll start seeing people talking about the blonde lady behind Rand Paul, because that's all this is, is fucking clickbait. It's not going to be clarifying. We're not going to learn anything, whether it came from the lab or the wet market. Why aren't they pointing the finger at China? I don't get. He called it a totalitarian state. He's talking about China. I don't understand this. Our agendas have gotten so focused on destroying the other side that we've now had in one week, the president and now a US Senator who doesn't like the president make the same case, which is China is a huge enemy. Trump said that they did the most to hurt our elections and are trying to do it now. He then invites them to a state dinner. Rand Paul says, how do you feel about why you let this terrible place do this research? He's suggesting that they may have created the virus and released it. Where's the action on China? Guess who won't Help us investigate what happened in the lab China. Nobody says anything about it. Same reason nobody says anything about Trump. Because it's not about truth. It's about beating the other side. Support for the Chris Cuomo project comes from Lucy. Now, look, I'm not saying that you should use nicotine, okay? But as somebody who is a caffeine nicotine guy, that is absolutely a reason that I like cigars. There are other reasons, but I know that getting that little jolt matters to me. Lucy. Lucy is giving you the nicotine pouch without all the garbage that people put in their nicotine products. And again, I'm not saying that nicotine is the way to go, but you're an adult, and they have a top tier premier nicotine pouch. It's really not even close because people just don't put the money into making the product. Well, all right, Lucy does. And that's why it's the only pouch of its kind that I would advertise, because, look, there's just too much garbage in these things. I knew it was gonna be true about vaping the same way it was about cigarettes. It's not just that you're inhaling something that's on fire. It's all the stuff, the chemicals that they put in it. 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Chris Cuomo
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Ridiculous.
Chris Cuomo
Even the myocarditis thing? I got a 20 year old, my son took the vaccine. Do I wish I had had better information about the chance of myocarditis? Yes. Did I even know what that is? No. Do I know what it is now? Yes. Do you? Right. I don't know. You just know that it's a scary thing. Is it? No. So then you look at the numbers. What are the chance? One in 25 to 15,000. Somewhere in that range. Okay, let's say it's one too many for you. Okay? Great. What happens if he gets the myocarditis? 9 out of 10 of the cases are mild and self resolved. So what are we talking about here? You make it sound like if the kid had the vaccine, he's going to die of a heart attack. It's just not the truth. Could they have had better information? Of course. Could they have been better with the messaging? Of course. Did they do things too loud? Too long maybe. I'll tell you what I don't like. I don't like that they gave you all those. All those guys gave you the payroll protection. I don't like. I don't like that they give you all those free money that people stole. How come we didn't hear about that in Doge? Because they like that you like that free money. Didn't you talk about socialism and redistribution of wealth? But that didn't bother you, right? Them paying for your business's payroll? Well, they're the ones who told me I couldn't do business. It's still socialistic. But you were okay with it because it worked for you. Look, these are the arguments, okay? Use that mentality of what matters to the many and why Fix America first. Look at the poll numbers on Trump. You're now over 7 in 10 who believe he's not focused on the right things. You see him sleeping. That's because he's an old man who's past his power curve. Now. Don't sleep on his energy, pun intended, because he's got plenty left in the tank. But this is not the guy who beat you in 2015. And if you want to win in the midterms, fix America first. See the truth in the numbers. Nobody's talking about Tony Fauci. Well, then why am I? Because it matters. It matters in the moment and it matters in understanding the state of play. But I'll tell you what matters more. Stop virtue signaling. Nobody's going to vote for change because they're worried about the democracy. Should they be worried about the democracy? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Do I think Trump may screw with the elections? Yeah, yeah, I do. I do. But I think it'll be exposed and opposed. Well, you're an idiot. Maybe. Maybe I am. Maybe I'm being ridiculously optimistic, foolishly so. Maybe I have a romantical notion about what our institutions and our people are capable of. Maybe. Maybe that's why I keep doing this job, when it is like slogging through shit of people dumping their agendas on me every five minutes in ways that you can't even imagine. Maybe. Maybe. But I am who I am and we are where we are. And I'm telling you, the numbers tell you that what I'm saying is right. Seven out of ten. He's focused on the wrong things. Okay. Seven out of ten. His policies, two out of ten think they've helped the economy. Two out of ten. Two out of ten. 6.5 out of ten say they've hurt the economy. Seven out of ten say health care is their first affordability concern. Nine and a half out of ten say affordability is a crisis that they confront daily. Seven out of ten say the President's tariff policies have put price pressure on them. See the truth in the numbers and it reveals the path, not mail, in voting, which is something to watch. Trump trying to do that by executive order is scary. And the Supreme Court, considering it is scary. And I do not believe they're going to let him make changes to mail in voting. I don't. Why? Because of the same principle, of the constitutional delivery of that to states by tradition and by court precedent and by the implied 9th and 10th Amendment implications, which is, what? If it's not specifically given to somebody? Then we default to it. Being for the state. And you don't get to decide balloting. Now, if they were to pass a federal law and make that constitutional case, maybe it gets litigated, maybe it doesn't, we'd be in a different place. But we don't have that. And he can't do it by executive order. That is not legislation. That is my feeling about how it comes out. I could be wrong. Why? Because who knows what this court does, but if it were a law school exam, that's the right answer. So I'm worried about that. But it's not going to win the elections. Democracy is not on the ballot. Is democracy an existential concern in a way that it hasn't been in recent history? Yes, perhaps. But it's not what's going to be on the ballot. On the ballot is going to be the pocketbook realities. And that is very good news for people who want change. Why? Because this president, he owns the status quo. I don't care what he says. I don't care what he says about Joe Biden. I don't give a shit about any new tapes that show that Joe Biden was weak in the head when he was president. No shit. He's an old, sick man who's had several problems with his brain, but he wasn't brain dead any more than, you know, Mr. Trump taking a nap at a funeral or taking a nap during the White Horse Correspondents Dinner is shocking to me. Doesn't mean he's incompetent or the 25th Amendment, which none of you even know how complicated that is and how easy it is for any administration to avoid its operation and exercise. You need to have a majority of the cabinet against you. It's never going to happen. It's never going to happen. And if it were going to happen, you know when it would have happened? Under Reagan? They all knew Reagan's Alzheimer had taken his brain away. They all knew it was Al Haig and they still didn't do shit. Why? Because it's too upsetting. It's too disruptive. It's not going to happen, so don't worry about it. Democracy's not on the ballot. Something much better for changes the economy is health care. Your best idea is to take the money and give it to the person instead of paying the companies. What are you talking about? What's that going to do for prices? That doesn't even make sense. It's just a shell game because he doesn't have any ideas. It's easy to say the ACA sucks. You've never done anything to change it. You've never done anything to improve it. 7 out of 10 say you should pass the subsidies. How come they haven't passed the subsidies? Because they don't give a shit. The problem works better than the fix. Unless you're in an election that's about change, and you are about to be in an election that is about change on an economic level. Okay, now, the economics of immigration, is that going to come into it tangentially? Something for you to remember that is never said? Okay, seven plus out of ten, if you're here illegally and you are a threat to society, you should be removed. Seven and a half out of 10. Okay, seven and a half out of 10. There should be a path to citizenship for people who are here illegally, who meet certain criteria. That number matters, too. And it cancels out the idea that that issue carries the midterms because you're for open borders and amnesty. The fringe of dsa. Most extreme proposals aside, that's not a thing. It's not on the ballot. It's a distraction. Just like Fauci, just like Lab Leak, just like all this shit. And in my opinion, kind of just like democracy. Is democracy more real? Yeah, because of Trump's obvious desire to fuck with the elections. But focus on Fix America first, because she needs to be fixed. And he owns the status quo, which means he owns the not fixing. And you know, the polls are showing that. Even his own voters say he's not focused on the right things. He's distracted by. I won that last election. He's distracted by my boy Bibi wants me to keep beating up on the Arabs. He's distracted by the wrong things and things that matter more. The right things that he used to be right about, in the minds of many voters have changed. That's the opportunity. Fix America First. The economy needs fixes. Support for the first Cuomo project comes from Chilipad 2.0. Okay, this is why I want these people to advertise. Screen time near bedtime is bad. Okay? The reason you're not getting restful sleep has to do with a lot of different factors. One of them is, is that you don't allow yourself to cool down before bedtime, emotionally and from a temperature perspective, because they're connected. So why are you supposed to turn the screen off? Because that light blasting in your face, it's not just about the light and the effect of the light. It's the energy. The energy keeps you going, keeps you heated up, literally and figuratively. That's why they Say, put the screen down. Chilipad has nothing to do with your screen. It has to do with the effects of your screen. 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The science says if you can cool yourself down emotionally, right? And physically, because they're related, you'll get better sleep. All right, here's what's actually happening. Okay? The stress, the screen time, the. Just one more headline. All of it is keeping a body that's too warm from getting into a deep sleep. All right? And again, you're not just tired because the news is exhausting. You're tired because your body never actually recovered. And again, temperature is a big part of this. The fans that we always use, that just moves air around. The chilipad uses actively chilled water to cool the bed. All right? So it's actually going to bring it down. It's just not going to move what's already there around. It's going to change what is there. All right? It's like standing in front of a fan when you're hot versus jumping into a cold pool, right? What's going to change you more and more quickly? Obviously, the pool. Same idea. And the 2.0 is not just an upgrade, it's a rethink. 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Safely withdraw to your bank account. Download Tang Luck now and start winning real rewards. Spin at Tang Luck today. We are at a point in our economic development. Now, you guys didn't want to hear this. I put out a podcast on it and none of you guys wanted to listen to it or watch it, okay? But here's the truth. The choices that were made starting in 1970 that fucked the working class by shifting everything to an investor economy are now on the table again. Why? Because of AI. We have to make major functional, systemic choices. We have to. It's not about socialism or capitalism, okay? In a capitalistic society, a government helps companies all the time. Is that socialism? Yeah, it's socialistic, but it happens, okay? Owned by the private, helped by the public. Donald Trump just took a 10% interest in Intel. Is that socialism? Is it? Yeah. Yeah, it is. Why? Because he's taking your money and giving it to a private company to help with its equity base. What's that? But you're okay with it, right? Just like you were happy with that free money, but you voted for Trump, right? Because you wanted him to deal with government spending, but you were okay with that free money during the pandemic, right? Look, the hypocrisy is opportunity, all right? Fix America first. Economy is going to be what motivates this election, not anything else. Unless you fall for it. Now, I don't think that the Democrats are in fall for it mode, and I don't think people in this country are for fall forward mode. I do think the Democrats are more in it than the people in the country. And that's good news.
Rand Paul
Why?
Chris Cuomo
Because the polling is too consistent about the dissatisfaction on these pocketbook issues. More than any culture war right now. These are a big few months we have in front of us in terms of what they can develop as a counter narrative. But the, you know, but it's communism versus capitalism. Not a thing. It's not going to work. Why? One, name me one communist country. Name me one Russia. Nope. Socialist. Why? Look up what communism is. Look up what it is. They're not even close to it. They're trying with that evil bastard they have running them. Trying, but they're nowhere close. North Korea? No, not really. No checks? A couple of the boxes, but no. So, one, it's a complete boogeyman. Two, does the DSA call for things that are a little out there? Yeah. So did Project 2025. Right. But you just saw that as one person's reckoning and it was exaggerated. And it's just a wish list of fanatical people and it's not going to add to that. But you don't want to give that to the dsa. See what I'm saying? So I don't like a number of their proposals. I also don't think they're going to happen. I absolutely believe in capitalism. I think it's the ultimate meritocracy. But I do think how you regulate it matters. I do think that capitalism without conscience is just about greed. And that's not what our society can be about. It can't be that basic. It can't be about your eternal quest for more and everybody getting the fuck out of the way. I don't believe in that. And neither does America, which is why regulations have always been in place and it is time for them again. AI is going to change everything. It's like the discovery of electricity. It's not just a technological advance. It's a resource that's going to change a lot of things in ways we do not understand. Neither do the people who are making it, which is scary. So take that opportunity. How do you regulate it? Who does it help? How does it hurt? How do you adjust? What does it mean? How do we feed the artisan class and get the trades back in it? Because we're going to need them more than ever. And it turns out they're more AI proof than being a coder. These are all the conversations to have. Not tariffs, not tax cuts. Certainly not tariffs that fund tax cuts. Wow. You talk about redistribution of wealth. You want to have a political argument? I'm here for it. That's why my hat's turned around. You want to tell me that you're worried about redistribution of wealth, but you are in favor of tariffs that I have to pay, that you then say that revenue. That revenue to the government. Is this, like, gift? No, it's coming from me, it's coming from the consumer. And now you're going to take that money and use it to justify a tax cut that goes to the top. That's not redistribution of wealth. Are you kidding me? What do you think I'm stupid? That's the conversation of the midterm. That's the conversation. Not fauci, not fraud, fugazi, none of that. Not chicks with dicks, not trans, none of that. It's all noise. Not even the Iran war. This is what the midterms are going to be motivated by. Support for the Chris Cuomo project comes from Cowboy colostrum, I take it. I actually need more. 1. Why? Heals your gut, helps helps with your biome, baby. And it is all about the gut. It is all about what's going on in your gut and what it allows you to process and how it allows you to do that. And got to get the colostrum right. How? Look, garbage in, garbage out, right? So colostrum comes from cows and in this instance, right, it comes from humans also. But we're not going to go down that road, at least not here, not with me. But cowboy colostrum does it the right way. Grass fed American cattle, cows. And they let the babies eat first before they collect the colostrum, if you care about that. The ethics of it seem to be in place. And it is the highest bioavailability and organic, of course, and rich in the nutrients that it can give you to help your own immune system. And that's what it's about. Mixes well, tastes well. It works. I will tell you this though. The strawberry does not work in coffee. Some people will tell you don't mix it into hot fluids, it reduces the efficacy. There is something to that. It is better mixed into something room temperature or cooler. However, it works better than what you're doing right now, no matter how you do it. But and for a limited time, my listeners are going to get up to 25% off your entire order. That's right. One dollar out of every four you spend gone. Thanks to me. Just go to www.cowkeepercolostrum.com Cuomo. Use the code CUOMO at the checkout and you'll get 25% off when you use the code Cuomo. Tell them I sent you.
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Chris Cuomo
You want to win in New York City. You want to win in Colorado. You want to Denver. You want to win California, you want to win Wisconsin, you want to win even Michigan. You want to win. You're going to get bright red light, bright blue. You want to change the House? I don't know that you change the Senate, but you want to change that. You might, but you want to change the House, you got to win close districts, purplish districts. Now, do you think defund ice wins in a close district? No. Do you think get rid of the presidency in this? No. Do you think Fauci is the devil wins in a close district? No. What wins? Reasonable economic fixes. That's what wins in a close one. Democracy is not on the ballot with those people, their existences. Play to that, understand that message, to that, repeat that. That is what will change those districts. Winning in the Bronx is one thing. Winning in Manhattan is one thing. Winning in Denver is one thing. Winning in a close district is something very different. And it is playing to extreme fatigue or fatigue with extremes or both. And you have to account for that and realize that will win. Is the baseline obvious understanding that the status quo is not sufficient. Underemployment is real. Affordability is real. The guy, when he's not asleep, already gave you the gift. He told you affordability is fake news. 95% disagree with him. What else do you need to know? That you shouldn't be talking about anything else. That's what decides the midterms. So you take the opportunity. You want to know about Fauci, I'm here for it. You want to know why he took the fifth? I explained it. You want to know why that's not going to matter in the midterms. Now. You know, just like all these other issues, let the culture wars evolve or devolve Fix America first is going to be the mentality that motivates the districts that will matter in changing the state of play. And there is another metric. People want divided power. They see that man, when one side is in control of all this, it just doesn't work well enough for the many. And it is time for the system to reflect the needs of the many and not just the wants of the few. That's what wins the midterms. What do you think? Thank you for subscribing following Checking me out in the morning. Checking me out here. Checking out Cuomo crime time. And you know why I'm in the crime space. I believe it's the last safe space to discuss what matters in our society without a political overlay. I think we come to those crime stories at least thinking about whether the system is out for justice or out for just us being some, you know, group's special interest there. Without the right left bullshit, it's about right and wrong more than it is about right and left. And I think that's a good thing. So Cuomo, Crimetime News Nation, Sirius here on the podcast. I'm here for all of it and I'm here for you. The challenges are real. That's why I'm selling the swag. Fix America first. Be a free agent. Be a critical thinker. Show that you're different and independent. That's what we need right now to get to a better place. So let's get after it.
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Episode: "Fauci Pleading The Fifth Doesn't Actually Matter"
Date: July 30, 2026
Host: Chris Cuomo
In this episode, Chris Cuomo dissects the recent headlines around Dr. Anthony Fauci invoking the Fifth Amendment during congressional questioning about his role in funding research at the Wuhan lab and possible connections to the origins of COVID-19. Cuomo argues that while Fauci's decision to plead the Fifth is politically charged and an optic that his opponents will use against him, the issue is more distraction than substance, with little impact on the pressing concerns of American voters. Instead, he pivots to discuss what actually matters for the upcoming midterms: economic anxiety, healthcare, and the public’s growing desire for systemic change.
Timestamps: 00:30–01:38
Senator Rand Paul relentlessly questions Fauci on funding "dangerous research in China" and presses him to admit regret or second thoughts.
Fauci, through counsel, declines to answer, invoking the Fifth Amendment.
“On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer based upon my rights under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution.”
— Tony Fauci (read by Rand Paul, 01:32)
Timestamps: 01:38–05:22
Cuomo calls out the “road to ruin” narrative that Fauci’s pleading the Fifth represents, highlighting how quickly such moments become viral clickbait rather than substantive dialogue.
He notes the focus on frivolous aspects, such as "the blonde woman over Rand Paul's shoulder," as emblematic of the superficiality of modern political coverage.
“This clip is going to get more attention for how attractive the blonde woman is over Rand Paul's shoulder than it is about anything that just came out of his mouth. And that's how stupid our politics has become.”
— Chris Cuomo (01:43)
Timestamps: 01:38–05:22
Cuomo recounts his personal connection with Fauci and how he warned him about being the "messenger for political decisions."
He criticizes the focus on Fauci as a scapegoat, noting the contradictory political treatment compared to Trump’s pandemic decisions:
“But Tony Fauci is the bad guy in the pandemic because... here's the accusation: you created COVID-19. That's the accusation you funded gain of function, which you don't know. You're never even going to know what the fuck that means, okay?”
— Chris Cuomo (03:12)
He explains gain-of-function research in simple terms and notes that every credible agency sees “0% chance” Fauci’s funding led to COVID-19's creation.
Timestamps: 05:22–08:32
Cuomo, as a trained attorney, explains why pleading the Fifth is a smart legal move—self-protection against political prosecutions—though he concedes that “it’s a bad look.”
Clarifies that the base that’s suspicious of Fauci already has its views fixed and that nothing will persuade otherwise.
Argues that this storyline is ultimately a distraction from genuine campaign issues.
“It is sad that this is the last chapter of his public kind of timeline, but this is where we are. And he got caught up in the politics and this is always where it was going to end.”
— Chris Cuomo (09:21)
Timestamps: 12:12–15:43, 34:30–38:25
Polling and Pocketbook Issues
Americans are far more preoccupied with economic anxieties—affordability, healthcare, and underemployment—than culture wars or pandemic blame games.
“Nine and a half out of ten say affordability is a crisis that they confront daily. Seven out of ten say the President's tariff policies have put price pressure on them. See the truth in the numbers and it reveals the path...”
— Chris Cuomo (14:49)
Cuomo runs through fresh poll numbers showing widespread disillusionment with the status quo and lack of faith in either party's economic management.
Asserts that neither attacks on Fauci nor endless relitigation of COVID-19 response will sway voters—economic issues will.
Midterms Strategy: What Matters in Purple Districts
To win in swing areas, parties need “reasonable economic fixes” rather than extreme stances or culture-war flashpoints.
Voters are exhausted by polarized theatrics and want pragmatic solutions.
"You want to win close districts, purplish districts... what wins? Reasonable economic fixes. That's what wins in a close one. Democracy is not on the ballot with those people, their existences."
— Chris Cuomo (34:54)
Timestamps: 15:43–28:20, 28:21–33:27
Takes on “fake outrage” around the origins of COVID and vaccine harms, chiding the echo-chamber effect in the US.
Calls out hypocrisy on both sides, particularly about pandemic relief, “free money,” and the double standard in applying socialism/capitalism labels for government interventions.
Warns against getting lost in partisan distractions (“not Fauci, not fraud, fugazi, none of that... it’s all noise”).
“Not chicks with dicks, not trans, none of that. It's all noise. Not even the Iran war. This is what the midterms are going to be motivated by.”
— Chris Cuomo (32:55)
Timestamps: 33:27–34:30
Warns that economic and technological shifts since the 1970s—especially the rise of AI—demand new regulatory thinking and policy innovation.
Suggests that both political parties should shift focus from ideological wars to preparing the workforce and economy for the next wave of transformation.
"AI is going to change everything. It's like the discovery of electricity... These are all the conversations to have. Not tariffs, not tax cuts.”
— Chris Cuomo (30:05)
On the Media Spectacle:
“This clip is going to get more attention for how attractive the blonde woman is over Rand Paul's shoulder than it is about anything that just came out of his mouth.”
— Chris Cuomo (01:43)
On Gain of Function:
“You start messing with viruses to see what you can make them do, to figure out how to stop them from doing that... Did it get funded? Yes. Specific to what? We don't know. Is it what created COVID 19? 0% chance.”
— Chris Cuomo (03:23)
On Pleading the Fifth:
“You plead the fifth, man. It's a bad look. Do I understand why? Yes. Why? Because I'm an attorney.”
— Chris Cuomo (05:34)
On the True Focus of Politics:
“Fix America first is going to be the mentality that motivates the districts that will matter in changing the state of play.”
— Chris Cuomo (37:58)
Cuomo frames Fauci’s legal maneuver as a minor chapter in the overarching story of American politics—a distraction that will quickly be subsumed by meme culture and the relentless churn of social media. He urges listeners to focus on the "pocketbook issues" and systemic changes that actually affect voters' lives, warning that neither extreme rhetoric nor pandemic scapegoating will shape the midterms. The real challenge, he says, is adapting to a new era defined by economic anxiety, technological upheaval, and the need for fresh, pragmatic leadership.
Summary by The Chris Cuomo Project Podcast Summarizer, July 2026