The Trump administration has reignited debate over the origins of COVID-19, publishing a detailed statement on Friday that accuses US public health officials and intelligence agencies of downplaying the lab-leak theory for political purposes.
The release, posted on a new White House webpage, comes shortly after the declassification of a CIA report suggesting a research lab origin in Wuhan, China remains plausible.
The webpage presents the lab-leak theory as the most likely explanation, accusing prominent figures like Dr. Anthony Fauci, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, and institutions such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH), EcoHealth Alliance, and the World Health Organization of suppressing evidence and hindering investigations.
“Public health officials often mislead the American people… most egregiously, the federal government demonized alternative treatments and disfavored narratives, such as the lab-leak theory,” the statement reads. Dr. Fauci is singled out for promoting the idea that the virus originated naturally, a view the Trump administration disputes.
The renewed focus follows the release of a CIA report assessing that a “research-related origin” is more likely, though it acknowledges “low confidence” in this conclusion and keeps both lab-based and natural origins on the table. CIA Director John Ratcliffe said publishing the report was part of a broader effort for transparency.
Trump-era figures like former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo welcomed the release, insisting their earlier warnings about a Wuhan lab origin were based on credible intelligence. “We weren’t cherry-picking the evidence,” Pompeo told Politico. “The world now knows our judgments were supported by an enormous amount of evidence.”
The webpage, formatted as an exposé, outlines alleged misuse of U.S. taxpayer money to fund gain-of-function research in Wuhan. It further accuses federal agencies, including the Department of Health and Human Services under President Biden, of shielding health officials from scrutiny, referencing ongoing investigations by the House Oversight Committee.
Critics say the administration is politicizing the pandemic's origins. China, meanwhile, has rejected the CIA's conclusions. “We firmly oppose the politicization and stigmatization of the source of the virus,” said Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for China’s U.S. embassy.
The report’s release comes on the heels of former President Biden’s preemptive pardon of Dr. Fauci, issued during his final days in office and retroactively covering actions from 2014 onwards. This move, widely seen as an attempt to shield Fauci from MAGA-led investigations, has drawn scrutiny from Republican lawmakers.
Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio), chair of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, reiterated: “The possibility that COVID-19 emerged because of a laboratory or research-related accident is not a conspiracy theory.”
Dr. Fauci, who testified before the same subcommittee in 2023, maintains his stance: “I have kept an open mind throughout the entire process, despite the fact that I felt then, and still do, that the most likely origin is a natural occurrence.”
As political battles over the virus’s origin continue to unfold, scientists and officials urge restraint and evidence-based inquiry. “Once again we call on everyone to respect science and stay away from conspiracy theories,” said China’s Liu Pengyu.
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