Gabbard Releases Intelligence Documents Alleging Fauci Directed Wuhan Research Funding

Summary

On her final day as Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard declassified and released a cache of documents she says proves Anthony Fauci directed funding for risky coronavirus research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology and lied to Congress about his agency's role in that work. The release lands in the middle of a years-long political fight over COVID-19 origins and federal science funding, and Gabbard framed it explicitly as an act of accountability: 'The COVID pandemic caused tremendous hardship and pain for millions of our fellow Americans and countless people around the world. Now, after years of lies and censorship and cover-ups, the American people deserve transparency, truth and accountability.' The documents connect Fauci's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to what Gabbard characterizes as 'risky' gain-of-function-style research, and tie that funding to pharmaceutical industry interests and the development of universal vaccines. Fauci has consistently denied before congressional committees that NIH funded gain-of-function research at Wuhan in ways that could have contributed to the pandemic. Gabbard's decision to time the release to her final hours in office gives the documents maximum public attention while leaving follow-up oversight to her successor. Whether the evidence meets a legal threshold for a perjury referral or congressional action remains to be seen, but the release virtually guarantees renewed calls for a formal investigation into Fauci's congressional testimony.