In a hearing before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held on July 11, 2024, Senator Rand Paul introduced a new proposal to safeguard against the kinds of dangerous research that led to the global devastation associated with the Covid-19 pandemic.
As we have learned more about the origins of Covid, it has become clear that not only was dangerous gain of function research the likely culprit for what was initially claimed to be a naturally occurring outbreak, but also that there was a concerted effort among members of the government, the medical establishment, and the media to prevent the world from learning that this research was even going on, silencing those who sought to learn and broadcast the truth.
As Senator Paul mentioned in his opening remarks, one need not be convinced of the lab leak theory to agree that more oversight is needed; even if such a thing could have happened, it is clear that the status quo for government-funded research is untenable if we want to avoid repeat—potentially a much more deadly one—of what we saw in 2020.
It is appropriate that Senator Paul, as a ranking member of the Committee, should be the one to author this new legislation and hold such a hearing. No one in Congress has been more dogged in trying to get to the bottom of what actually happened prior to the outbreak in 2020, and there is no doubt that without his efforts we would know far less than we do today. In spite of facing dead ends, stonewalling, and outright lies about whether or not gain of function research was being conducted in Wuhan, Senator Paul has been relentless in his pursuit of the truth, and his efforts to expose the massive coverup orchestrated by Dr. Anthony Fauci and his allies.
The bill proposed by Senator Paul, entitled the Risky Research Review Act, would create a new, independent board of medical experts to review and approve high-risk research practices through the executive branch before they can be approved. The legislation emphasizes that members of the board should be impartial and independent from political partisanship, so that their decisions cannot be influenced by political, or indeed monetary matters.
In addition to Senator Paul’s proposal, four expert witnesses were invited to testify before the Committee about the potential benefits and risks of this kind of research, and their views on what actions, if any, Congress needs to take. These witnesses included Dr. Robert Redfield, former director of the CDC and member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force; Dr. Gerald Parker, associate dean for Global One Health; Dr. Carrie Wolinetz, senior principal at Lewis-Burke Associates; and Dr. Kevin Esvelt, associate professor at MIT Media Lab.
While all the witnesses agreed that more oversight is needed, there was some disagreement on what form this should take. Dr. Wolinetz, for example, favors an internal White House oversight proposal rather than Senator Paul’s legislation, which she fears will excessively limit the potential benefits for pathogen research. It is not surprising that Dr. Wolinetz should be resistant to oversight. Later in the hearing, she received a grilling from Senator Josh Hawley for her previous service as chief of staff to Dr. Francis Collins, one of the major architects of the Covid censorship regime coming out of the NIH—censorship which she brazenly denied ever took place.
Most interesting, however, was Dr. Redfield’s testimony, in which he enthusiastically endorsed Senator Paul’s plan. Redfield now appears to be at least partially persuaded by the lab leak theory, and claims that he was initially agnostic about the origins of the virus. He also criticized the lack of critical assessment of the risks of the Covid vaccine, and attacked the idea of mandates as antithetical to human freedom. This is all very nice to hear, but comes as cold comfort at this late date. One can’t help but wonder where this criticism was when Redfield was serving at the CDC or on the White House Coronavirus Task Force. According to fellow Task Force member Dr. Scott Atlas, whom Free the People interviewed for the new series The Coverup on BlazeTV, Redfield was hardly a vocal dissenter to the recommendations of Anthony Fauci or Deborah Birx when they were demonizing the lab leak theory and anyone who supported it. Redfield also accused Dr. Atlas of spreading dangerous misinformation when he dared to challenge several planks of the mainstream coronavirus narrative.
A key figure in The Coverup series is Senator Paul himself, who takes viewers through the entire story of his investigation into the Covid coverup and the unbelievable lengths that the pandemic industrial complex went to in their efforts to prevent him from uncovering the truth.
Currently, the first episode of The Coverup, featuring Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, is streaming on BlazeTV, with the second episode, featuring Senator Paul, and the third episode, featuring Dr. Atlas, soon to follow. Senator Paul is correct when he points out that the real value in exposing the Covid coverup is not in dealing out punishment, or even holding those responsible for the pandemic accountable. Rather, it’s crucial we understand the nature and dangers of the kind of research being funded by our own government, in order to prevent the next pandemic, one which several of the witnesses confirmed is highly likely to occur. Hearings like the one held today, as well as the public exposure of these facts through series like The Coverup, could be critical steps towards preserving human health and freedom in a future that is all too rapidly approaching.
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