On Monday, Republicans finally got their wish. Anthony Fauci appeared in the flesh before the House Select Subcommittee investigating the COVID-19 pandemic and gave a vintage performance. 

To be sure, nothing about the word "vintage" there is meant to laud his words. The spectacle was exactly what you'd expect. Namely, Fauci passed the buck and took zero responsibility for his role in the federal response to the coronavirus while Republicans got their soundbites. 

WATCH: Anthony Fauci Testifies Before House Select Committee on Coronavirus Pandemic

Here's Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene producing one of the most viral clips of the day. 

I let Anthony Fauci know exactly how the American people feel about his crimes against humanity.

Mr. Fauci should be prosecuted and thrown in jail. pic.twitter.com/iHqOg3rpox

— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) June 3, 2024

Is she wrong? No, she's not wrong. Fauci allegedly lied under oath about American funding going to the lab in Wuham. He also worked diligently to protect the Chinese government, doing everything he could to scuttle the so-called "lab leak theory" which has now become the most credible explanation for the coronavirus' origins. 

As to the "science" he was constantly touting, there was very little of it backing his recommendations that formed the backbone of lockdowns and mitigation measures across the country. That whole six-foot rule thing? Fauci admitted during the hearing that no clinical trials demonstrated such a decree's efficacy. 

When pressed on the ability of the various COVID-19 vaccines to stop the spread, Fauci went back to an old standby, insisting that early on, transmission was reduced. His evidence for that? There doesn't appear to be any.

So what was wrong with Greene saying Fauci should be in prison? Nothing. Rather, the frustration lies in knowing it's all performative. House Republicans love to go viral. They don't have the stomach for much else, though. 

The chances that Fauci ever sees the inside of a jail cell hover somewhere south of zero. Even if Republicans retake the White House and Senate in November, does anyone think they will move to prosecute the doctor? I'd love for Donald Trump and the rest of the GOP to be that ruthless, but I see no evidence they are. I'm not even sure I blame them. What's the point of expending political capital for what certainly seems like a lost cause?

Instead, we appear doomed to repeat the current cycle of Fauci appearing in public and saying the same things he's already said while the same Republicans say the same things they've already said. Fauci is now retired after being the highest-paid official in the federal government. He's going to ride off into the sunset with both middle fingers in the air. 

I'll be honest. I don't feel like I've got any outrage left to give on this subject, especially after many Republicans spent all of 2023 insisting it was old news. It is what it is. It's beyond frustrating, but there's no reason to think accountability will ever come.