Fauci says he has a ‘completely open mind’ to Covid-19 origin theoriesAnthony Fauci, in his opening statement before the House select subcommittee on the coronavirus pandemic, thanked the panel for the opportunity to testify.
The former government scientist addressed “certain issues that have been seriously distorted concerning me”.
On the subject of the lab leak theory, Fauci said the accusation that he “influenced these scientists to change their minds with millions of dollars in grant money is absolutely false and simply preposterous”.
He then addressed accusations that he allegedly tried to “cover up” the possibility that the virus originated from a lab. “The truth is exactly the opposite,” he said.
Fauci has long said publicly that he was open to both theories but that there’s more evidence supporting the virus’s natural origins, AP reported. Fauci said:
I have repeatedly stated that I have a completely open mind to either possibility and that if definitive evidence becomes available to validate or refute either theory, I will ready accept it.
Dr Anthony Fauci, former Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, is sworn-in before testifying before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic at the Rayburn House Office Building on June 03, 2024 in Washington, DC. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images