Staff Reports
In a bold move, the House Republicans have sent a subpoena to David Morens, a former top aide of Dr. Anthony Fauci, for using his private email to conduct government business regarding the origins of COVID-19. This comes after the release of emails by the private research firm EcoHealth Alliance, which show that Morens requested communication exclusively through his private Gmail account.
The Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic has been investigating Morens since last June, following allegations that he violated federal records statutes by using his Gmail to avoid government and public scrutiny. The investigation intensified when Morens informed colleagues in September 2021 that he would “delete anything [he didn’t] want to see in the New York Times” from his government account.
.@COVIDSelect issued a subpoena today for the private emails of David Morens, the senior aide to then-NIAID Director Anthony Fauci.@dcexaminer had the exclusive first story on this important development in the #COVID19 origins investigation.https://t.co/8qmSOBUQhG
— Gabrielle M. Etzel (@UnvarnishedGME) April 16, 2024
Morens, who has been a part of the NIAID for years, voluntarily complied with the subcommittee’s request for an interview in January. However, he denied all allegations of destroying government records or using his personal email account. In a surprising turn of events, Morens ceased attempting to reach an agreement with the subcommittee regarding additional document requests after the transcribed interview.
Subcommittee Chairman Brad Wenstrup emphasized the necessity of Morens’ records to inform the investigation of COVID-19 origins and the federal government’s response. The accompanying subpoena demands unredacted copies of all documents and communications between Morens and several former NIH officials, including Fauci and former NIH Directors Francis Collins and Lawrence Tabak. The subpoena also requests all of Morens’ communications to World Health Organization lead scientist Jeremy Farrar and EcoHealth President Peter Daszak.
EcoHealth Alliance, which has been under scrutiny for its NIH funding for research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, published emails between Morens, Daszak, and former NIH employee Gerald Keusch. The emails outline frustration with the NIH following the suspension of funding for the project “Understanding the risk of bat coronavirus emergence,” which was conducted at the WIV.
House Republicans are leaving no stone unturned in their pursuit of the truth about the origins of COVID-19 and the role of government officials in handling the pandemic. Stay tuned as developments unfold in this gripping saga.
