Republican Sens. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Rand Paul of Kentucky released text messages from former government phones used by Dr. Anthony Fauci, saying the devices contained more than 34,000 messages.

The senators published 11 text exchanges, including discussions from 2021 about potential risks COVID-19 vaccines could pose to pregnant women.

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"I would say that in any vaccine in which data are lacking in pregnant women one must weigh the potential risks against the benefits. COVID-19 can be a serious disease especially in pregnancy. In the vaccine trials, pregnant women were not allowed but following the EUA, a large number (more than 10,000) pregnant women have been vaccinated. No issues have arisen," Fauci wrote in one of the texts.

Health officials later concluded the vaccines were generally safe for pregnant women.

The release of texts comes after the Republican-led Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee voted Thursday to hold Fauci in contempt of Congress after he invoked the Fifth Amendment and refused to answer questions before the committee last month.

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Fauci declined to answer more than 100 questions during the nearly three-hour hearing, repeatedly invoking his constitutional right against self-incrimination. The vote authorizes sending the matter to the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. Under federal law, the U.S. attorney is supposed to bring the matter before a grand jury.