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Press Release Published: Jan 18, 2024

Wenstrup Releases Takeaways from Interview with Dr. Fauci’s Advisor

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WASHINGTON — Today, Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Chairman Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) led a transcribed interview of Dr. David Morens — a top advisor to Dr. Anthony Fauci at the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). The six-hour testimony centered on allegations that Dr. Morens deleted COVID-19 origins material and used his personal email to avoid the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) during the pandemic. In emails revealed by the Select Subcommittee last year, Dr. Morens stated, “I always try to communicate over gmail because my NIH email is FOIA’d constantly” and “I will delete anything I don’t want to see in the New York Times.”

Dr. Morens appeared before the Select Subcommittee for the first time on December 29, 2023. Unfortunately, his initial transcribed interview was derailed by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) after they prohibited Dr. Morens from answering questions about the origins of COVID-19. Today’s rescheduled interview proceeded with limited obstruction.

Key takeaways from Dr. David Morens’s transcribed interview:

  • Dr. Morens characterized EcoHealth Alliance President Dr. Peter Daszak as a close friend.
    • EcoHealth Alliance — an American non-profit whose mission is to prevent pandemics — used taxpayer dollars to fund dangerous gain-of-function research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
    • In November, the Select Subcommittee conducted a 9.5 hour transcribed interview with Dr. Daszak where he described Dr. Morens a his “mentor.”
  • Despite Dr. Fauci’s concession that the lab-leak hypothesis is not a conspiracy theory, Dr. Morens stood with 100% certainty behind the zoonotic origin of COVID-19.
    • Dr. Morens admitted he has not explored any of the scientific evidence behind a potential lab leak or an engineered virus.
  • Dr. Morens was removed from his position at the NIH and placed on administrative leave after the Select Subcommittee revealed his potential federal records violation last year.
  • Dr. Morens denied deleting any COVID-19 origins material or forwarding any federal records to his Gmail in an effort to avoid FOIA.
    • The Select Subcommittee has serious questions about the legitimacy of these claims. Chairman Wenstrup plans to receive access to Dr. Morens’s personal email account.

Read more about the Select Subcommittee’s efforts to hold Dr. David Morens accountable:

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