Fauci Defended & Funded Gain-of-Function Research Despite ‘Risk’ of Pandemic

Anthony Fauci advocated for gain-of-function research, which modifies pathogens to increase their lethality, in a speech and academic paper, calling the method “integral” for scientific advancement even though it could cause a “pandemic,” The National Pulse reported.

In a 2013 speech for the National Institutes of Health on “Gain-of-Function Research on HPAI H5N1 Viruses,” or avian influenza, Fauci acknowledged the “concern” about manipulating viruses.

He said that “products or information generated by these experiments might be used by others in a way that could harm society either carelessly, in an unregulated fashion, by inexperienced people, or even by deliberate misuse.”

He also admitted that the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which he has directed since 1984, is one of “the major funders of most but not all of these people” who conduct gain-of-function research.

In sworn testimony, Fauci blatantly lied about the NIAID’s funding for the experimental research, asserting “categorically” that taxpayer dollars had not contributed to the creation of scientifically engineered super viruses.

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said that Fauci “absolutely…lied to the American people” and committed perjury, according to Breitbart.

In a 2012 paper for the American Society for Microbiology, Fauci recognized the public health threat from the manipulation of viruses.

“In an unlikely but conceivable turn of events, what if that scientist becomes infected with the virus, which leads to an outbreak and ultimately triggers a pandemic?,” he asked.

Fauci asserted that it is “more likely” that a virus would emerge naturally than from a laboratory.

“Scientists working in this field might say – as indeed I have said – that the benefits of such experiments and the resulting knowledge outweigh the risks,” he said.

Yet, the NIH-hosted panel on gain-of-function research admitted that scientists disagree “as to the scientific and/or public health value of these GOF experiments.”

Despite these disagreements, the scientists agreed that “the distribution of the knowledge [coming from the research] should be restricted.”

“We cannot expect those who have these concerns to simply take us, the scientific community, at our word that the benefits of this work outweigh the risks, nor can we ignore their calls for greater transparency, their concerns about conflicts of interest, and their efforts to engage in a dialog about whether these experiments should have been performed in the first place,” Fauci said.