The feud between Dr. Anthony Fauci and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., continued Tuesday when the two sparred at a Senate health hearing. Fauci cited Paul's false claims have been used for political gain and that have sparked death threats.

Fauci said Paul is “making a catastrophic epidemic for [his own] political gain.” Fauci cited how misinformation has been posted on Paul's website as a fundraising strategy. The Washington Post noted that the Paul’s campaign on Tuesday sent out a mass fundraising email that included the subject line, "Fauci is hysterical."

Fauci and Paul have feuded for several months in public hearings.

Paul is one of many Republican lawmakers who have made questionable if not outright false or misleading remarks about the COVID-19 pandemic and the origins of the virus. In August, Twitter suspended Paul for a week due to a video he posted that made inaccurate claims about the effectiveness of masks.

Paul had cited emails Fauci sent to Dr. Francis Collins, then the director of the National Institutes of Health, in which Collins and Fauci disagreed with the theory that the virus originated in a lab. Paul has pointed to emails that Fauci sent colleagues that included a link to a Wired article that debunked herd immunity claims.

Fauci said that when lawmakers like Paul makes false or misleading statements, “all of a sudden that kindles the crazies out there, and I have threats upon my life, harassment of my family, and my children, with obscene phone calls because people are lying about me.”

In late December, police in Iowa arrested a heavily armed California man who was traveling to Washington, D.C., with a "hit list" that included Fauci and notable Democrats.

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