Now Gabbard accuses FAUCI of funding dangerous Wuhan research that ‘sparked COVID-19’ after Ukraine biolabs revelations

Gabbard Alleges Fauci Funded Risky Research

US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has accused Dr Anthony Fauci of funding risky coronavirus research in China before the pandemic, then helping steer US intelligence assessments away from a possible lab origin for COVID-19.

Gabbard made the allegations on Thursday as the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released a new batch of documents on the origins of COVID-19.

“It’s time you know the truth,” Gabbard said in a direct address from Washington, DC, framing the release as part of President Donald Trump’s ‘maximum transparency’ mandate.

“Before the Covid pandemic, Doctor Fauci, as head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, provided millions in US taxpayer dollars to fund dangerous gain-of-function research on bat coronaviruses at the Wuhan Institute of Virology,” Gabbard said.

She claimed that work was “now widely viewed as the source of the unintentional lab leak that sparked the pandemic.”

The ODNI documents include an index of emails, reports, whistleblower complaints, and EcoHealth Alliance grant materials linked to COVID-19 origins.

“These documents expose Fauci’s direct role in influencing and manipulating IC Assessments on Covid-19 and how Fauci lied to Congress in 2024 when, under oath, he denied knowledge of or participation in discussions with intelligence officials about viral research,” she said.

Fauci’s Record And Response

Fauci is one of the best-known public health figures in the United States. A physician and immunologist, he led the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases from 1984 to 2022, advised seven US presidents, and became a daily face of the US COVID-19 response under Donald Trump and Joe Biden. He has not commented.

Supporters credit him with a long record on HIV/AIDS, Ebola and pandemic preparedness. Critics say he became too powerful inside the public health system and too dismissive of dissent during COVID-19.

Intelligence Debate Over COVID Origins

Gabbard claimed that the newly released documents show Fauci was not just a health official, but a behind-the-scenes influence on the intelligence community.

She said Fauci “pushed the intelligence community to endorse a natural animal origin” to draw attention away from “his dangerous gain of function research that he funded using taxpayer dollars.”

A 2023 ODNI report said US intelligence agencies remained divided. Some leaned towards a natural origin, while the FBI and Department of Energy leaned towards a lab-related incident. The CIA later assessed that a lab origin was more likely, but with low confidence.

China has rejected the lab-leak allegation and accused Washington of politicising the search for COVID-19’s origins.

Broader Controversies And Departure

It comes after Gabbard claimed last week that US governments had lied about the existence and funding of biolabs – including in Ukraine. Gabbard is stepping down from her role as of June 30, citing her husband’s recent cancer diagnosis. AI may have been used in video post-production.