The Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Chairman Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) and House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer (R-Kentucky) have called on the Department of Energy, the Department of State, and the FBI to turn over the necessary information for the for the committee to conduct an investigation into Covid origins.
This follows the Republican lawmakers’ previous requests to the Department of Health and Human Services, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, EcoHealth Alliance (a controversial non-profit that received taxpayer funding and worked with the communist Chinese on risky gain-of-function research), Dr. Anthony Fauci, and Dr. Francis Collins.
Since April 2, 2020, Committee on Oversight and Accountability Republicans have been investigating the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic, including the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s role in obscuring the truth regarding the initial outbreak, and whether any U.S. taxpayer dollars funded the Wuhan Institute of Virology’s (WIV) dangerous gain-of-function research. The Select Subcommittee is now the only Committee in Congress with explicit jurisdiction to conduct this wide-ranging and important investigation. This investigation will be a priority for the Select Subcommittee but also the global community. As stated by 18 experts in Science magazine, ‘[k]nowing how Covid-19 emerged is critical for informing global strategies to mitigate the risk of future outbreaks.’ Further, according to the Lancet Covid-19 Commission, ‘[i]dentifying [Covid-19’s] origins would provide greater clarity into not only the causes of the current pandemic but also vulnerabilities to future outbreaks and strategies to prevent them.’ The origins of the disease that has taken the lives of more than six million people is still unknown. Uncovering the truth about the origins of Covid-19 is vital to U.S. national security, critical to the prevention of future pandemics, and will bring some semblance of closure to the families of those who lost loved ones during the pandemic. Your documents and testimony are essential to informing the Committee about what the U.S. government knew regarding the origins of Covid-19 and when the government knew it.”
Reps. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) and James Comer (R-Kentucky)
Read the full letters below:
Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm
Department of State Secretary Antony Blinken
Read more here about the investigation.
Read the letter to Granholm below.
The Honorable Jennifer Granholm Secretary
U.S. Department of Energy
1000 Independence Ave., SW Washington, DC 20585
Dear Secretary Granholm:
February 27, 2023
The Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic is investigating the origins of COVID-19. Since April 2, 2020, Committee on Oversight and Accountability Republicans have been investigating the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s role in obscuring the truth regarding the initial outbreak, and whether any U.S. taxpayer dollars funded the Wuhan Institute of Virology’s (WIV) dangerous gain-of-function research.1 The Select Subcommittee is now the only Committee in Congress with explicit jurisdiction to conduct this wide-ranging and important investigation.
This investigation will be a priority for the Select Subcommittee but also the global community. As stated by 18 experts in Science magazine, “[k]nowing how COVID-19 emerged is critical for informing global strategies to mitigate the risk of future outbreaks.”2 Further, according to the Lancet COVID-19 Commission, “[i]dentifying [COVID-19’s] origins would provide greater clarity into not only the causes of the current pandemic but also vulnerabilities to future outbreaks and strategies to prevent them.”3 The origins of the disease that has taken the lives of more than six million people is still unknown.4 Uncovering the truth about the origins of COVID-19 is vital to U.S. national security, critical to the prevention of future pandemics, and will bring some semblance of closure to the families of those who lost loved ones during the pandemic.
Your Department has been at the center of the origins debate, oversees the U.S. National Laboratories, and interacts directly with the Intelligence Community (IC). Therefore your documents and testimony are essential to informing the Select Subcommittee about what the U.S. government knew regarding the origins of COVID-19 and when the government knew it.
1 Letter from Hon. James Comer, et. al., Ranking Member, Subcomm. on the Environment, H. Comm. on Oversight & Reform, to Hon. Michael R. Pompeo, Sec’y, U.S. Dep’t of State (Apr. 2, 2020).
2 Jesse D. Bloom, et. al., Investigate the origins of COVID-19, SCIENCE (May 14, 2021).
3 Jeffrey D. Sachs, et. al., The Lancet Commission on lessons learned for the future from the COVID-19 pandemic, THE LANCET (Sept. 14, 2022).
4 Id (“Theories of accidental release from a lab and zoonotic spillover remain viable.”) (“…hypothesis about both natural and laboratory spillovers are in play and need further investigation.”).
The Honorable Jennifer Granholm February 27, 2023
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To assist the Select Subcommittee with its investigation, including but not limited to areas involving the origins of COVID-19 and the CCP’s efforts to cover it up, please produce the following documents and information as soon as possible but no later than March 13, 2023:
The Origins of COVID-19
- All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy regarding the origins of COVID-19, EcoHealth Alliance, Inc., gain-of-function research, enhanced Potential Pandemic Pathogen research, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, the Wuhan Center[s] for Disease Prevention and Control, or the People’s Republic of China’s compliance with the Biological Weapons Convention from October 2019 through present.
- All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and the Department of Health and Human Services, the National Institutes of Health, or the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases regarding the origins of COVID-19, EcoHealth Alliance, Inc., gain-of-function research, enhanced Potential Pandemic Pathogen research, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, or the Wuhan Center[s] for Disease Prevention and Control from October 2019 through present.
3. All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and the Executive Office of the President, including but not limited to the Office of Science and Technology Policy and the National Security Council, regarding the origins of COVID-19, EcoHealth Alliance, Inc., gain-of-function research, enhanced Potential Pandemic Pathogen research, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, the Wuhan Center[s] for Disease Prevention and Control, or the People’s Republic of China’s compliance with the Biological Weapons Convention from October 2019 through present.
5. All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
6. All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and the Wuhan Center[s] for Disease Prevention and Control.
4. All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and EcoHealth Alliance, Inc (including its predecessors: the Wildlife Preservation Trust or The Wild Life Trust).
5. All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and the following regarding the origins of COVID-19, EcoHealth Alliance, Inc., gain-of-function research, enhanced Potential Pandemic Pathogen research, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, or the Wuhan Center[s] for Disease Prevention and Control:
a. The Wellcome Trust, including but not limited to Dr. Jeremy Farrar;
The Honorable Jennifer Granholm February 27, 2023
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b. University of Texas Medical Branch, including but not limited to Dr. James LeDuc;
c. John Hopkins Center for Health Security, including but not limited to Dr. Tom Inglesby;
d. Scripps Research, including but not limited to Dr. Kristian Andersen or Dr. Michael Farzan;
e. University of North Carolina, including but not limited to Dr. Ralph Baric or Ms. Antoinette Baric;
f. Tulane University, including but not limited to Dr. Robert Garry;
g. Columbia University, including but not limited to Dr. W. Ian Lipkin;
- University of Edinburgh, including but not limited to Dr. Andrew Rambaut; and
- University of Sydney, including but not limited to Dr. Edward Holmes.
The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
8. All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy regarding the classified report produced around May 2020 regarding the origins of COVID-19 by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
9. All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and the Department of State regarding the classified report produced around May 2020 regarding the origins of COVID-19 by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
10. All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence regarding the classified report produced around May 2020 regarding the origins of COVID-19 by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
11. All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and the Executive Office of the President, including but not limited to the National Security Council or the Office of Science and Technology Policy, regarding the classified report produced around May 2020 regarding the origins of COVID-19 by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
The Honorable Jennifer Granholm February 27, 2023
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The Department’s Intelligence Assessments
- All classified and unclassified assessments of the origins of COVID-19 prepared by the Department, including but not limited to those from the National Laboratories, from January 2020 through present.
- A list of all non-governmental experts, including their affiliations, consulted in the preparation, formulation, or drafting of any assessment regarding the origins of COVID- 19, disaggregated by which assessment the experts consulted on.
- A list of all pre-prints, peer reviewed, or otherwise published research or scholarly papers, articles, or manuscripts consulted or used in the preparation, formulation, or drafting of any assessment regarding the origins of COVID-19, disaggregated by which assessment the sources were used.
- All classified documents, communications, cables, reports, or other materials relied upon in the preparation, formulation, and drafting of any assessment regarding the origins of COVID-19, disaggregated by which assessment the sources were used.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s Origins Assessment
- All documents and communications between or among employees of Department of Energy regarding the Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s Assessment on COVID-19 Origins.
- All documents and communications between or among employees of the Department of Energy and any component of the Intelligence Community regarding the origins of COVID-19, EcoHealth Alliance, Inc., gain-of-function research, enhanced Potential Pandemic Pathogen research, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, or the Wuhan Center[s] for Disease Prevention and Control.In addition to the requested documents, the Select Subcommittee may request employees
of your Department sit for transcribed interviews.
The Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic is authorized to investigate “the origins of the Coronavirus pandemic, including but not limited to the Federal Government’s funding of gain-of function research” and “executive branch policies, deliberations, decisions, activities, and internal and external communications related to the coronavirus pandemic” under H. Res. 5. Further, the Committee on Oversight and Accountability is authorized to investigate “any matter” at “any time” pursuant to House Rule X. To schedule the interviews or ask any follow up or related questions please contact Committee staff at (202) 225-5074.
Thank you for your attention to this very important matter.
The Honorable Jennifer Granholm February 27, 2023
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Brad R. Wenstrup, D.P.M. Chairman
Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic
Sincerely,
cc: The Honorable Raul Ruiz, Ranking Member
Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic
The Honorable Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member Committee on Oversight and Accountability
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