1. “NIH Has Not Ever Funded Gain-of-Function Research”
“The NIH has not ever and does not now fund gain-of-function research in the Wuhan Institute of Virology.”
— Dr. Anthony Fauci, sworn testimony before Congress, May 11, 2021Contradicting Evidence
FOIA documents obtained by The Intercept (900+ pages, September 2021) show EcoHealth Alliance used NIAID grant funds at the Wuhan Institute of Virology to construct chimeric bat coronaviruses. Progress reports submitted to NIH showed that three altered bat coronaviruses replicated “far more quickly” than the original virus — meeting the functional definition of gain-of-function research. The total EcoHealth grant was $3.7 million, with $3.1 million for bat coronavirus research and ~$599,000 sub-awarded to WIV.
The House Select Subcommittee's final report (December 2024) concluded: “EcoHealth under Dr. Peter Daszak used U.S. taxpayer dollars to facilitate dangerous gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China.”
The House Select Subcommittee's final report (December 2024) concluded: “EcoHealth under Dr. Peter Daszak used U.S. taxpayer dollars to facilitate dangerous gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China.”
2. “I Never Deleted Records or Obstructed Transparency”
During his June 2024 testimony before the Select Subcommittee, Dr. Fauci testified he had never deleted federal records or sought to obstruct the release of public documents.
— House Select Subcommittee hearing, June 3, 2024Contradicting Evidence
Emails uncovered in September 2025 by Sen. Rand Paul show Fauci instructing then-NIH Director Francis Collins: “Please delete this e-mail after you read it.” This directly contradicts his sworn testimony.
Additionally, Fauci's chief of staff Greg Folkers was found to have strategically misspelled keywords in emails so they wouldn't be captured in FOIA searches. Fauci's senior advisor David Morens used personal Gmail to avoid FOIA, stating: “I try to always communicate on gmail because my NIH email is FOIA'd constantly.”
Additionally, Fauci's chief of staff Greg Folkers was found to have strategically misspelled keywords in emails so they wouldn't be captured in FOIA searches. Fauci's senior advisor David Morens used personal Gmail to avoid FOIA, stating: “I try to always communicate on gmail because my NIH email is FOIA'd constantly.”
3. “My Staff Had No Conflicts of Interest”
Contradicting Evidence
Fauci initially testified that his staff did not possess conflicts of interest. He later corrected this testimony during his June 2024 appearance before the Select Subcommittee.
NIH scientists received an estimated $350 million+ in royalties from pharmaceutical companies since 2009. A lawsuit revealed records of $710 million in total payments from private pharmaceutical companies to NIH. A 2005 British Medical Journal report found that patients in NIH drug trials were not informed that NIH scientists received royalties from the same companies whose drugs were being tested.
NIH scientists received an estimated $350 million+ in royalties from pharmaceutical companies since 2009. A lawsuit revealed records of $710 million in total payments from private pharmaceutical companies to NIH. A 2005 British Medical Journal report found that patients in NIH drug trials were not informed that NIH scientists received royalties from the same companies whose drugs were being tested.
4. “The Virus Could Not Have Come From a Lab”
Contradicting Evidence
While publicly dismissing the lab-leak theory as a conspiracy, FOIA-released emails show that on January 31, 2020, Fauci was privately told by virologist Kristian Andersen that the genome “looks inconsistent with natural evolution.” On February 2, 2020, Jeremy Farrar told Fauci he was “honestly at 50” on a natural-vs-lab scale. Robert Garry wrote he “cannot understand how this could have emerged naturally.”
Rather than investigating these concerns, congressional investigators found the group pivoted to “disprove any type of lab theory,” producing the influential “Proximal Origin” paper. Fauci's senior advisor told media contacts: “Tony doesn't want his fingerprints on origin stories.”
Rather than investigating these concerns, congressional investigators found the group pivoted to “disprove any type of lab theory,” producing the influential “Proximal Origin” paper. Fauci's senior advisor told media contacts: “Tony doesn't want his fingerprints on origin stories.”
5. “The U.S. Only Gave $600,000 to Wuhan Lab”
Contradicting Evidence
Fauci publicly characterized the funding as “a modest collaboration” of approximately $600,000 to the Wuhan lab. Documents obtained through FOIA and congressional investigation reveal the full picture: the EcoHealth Alliance grant totaled $3.7 million, with $3.1 million dedicated to bat coronavirus research. The WIV sub-award of ~$599,000 represented only the direct sub-award; the broader grant supported the entire research pipeline that included WIV's chimeric virus work.