FILE – In this April 20, 2021, file photo, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on voting rights, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP, File)
OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 10:09 AM PT – Tuesday, May 25, 2021
Republicans have continued to sound the alarm signaling that the coronavirus may not have been developed naturally.
On Monday, several GOP congressmen and former Trump administration officials responded to a Wall Street Journal report published a day earlier. The report alleged three researchers from the Wuhan Institute of Virology came down with symptoms similar to COVID-19 in November 2019. This occurred just before the coronavirus broke out to other parts of Wuhan and became a global pandemic.
The Wuhan Institute of Virology & Wuhan CDC need to open their doors & databases for a full audit of their research—especially dangerous gain-of-function research.
The CCP needs to stop obstructing investigators, destroying evidence, and telling ridiculous lies.
— Tom Cotton (@SenTomCotton) May 25, 2021
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) encouraged Americans to use common sense while claiming it would be a remarkable coincidence if the virus naturally started near the lab, which has a history of testing coronaviruses. Additionally, former FDA chief Scott Gottlieb said this is consistent with State Department data and a growing body of evidence pointing to the lab as a possible ground zero.
Gottlieb also urged naysayers to open their minds to these reports while arguing the speculation behind the virus beginning from an animal is beginning to look less likely as more information emerges.
“Maybe a year ago that kind of statement made a lot of sense because that were the more likely scenario, but we haven’t found the intermediate host,” he stated. “We found no evidence of this virus in an animal or anywhere…we haven’t found the true source of the virus.”
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he and top federal health officials saw data pointing to the lab early on. The former official claimed he and a select few tried to steer the conversation toward the lab and away from the animal origin theory.
However, Pompeo alleged a louder group of top scientists privy to the data, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, sounded off on the animal origin theory. He said their echoes radiated throughout the country and were adopted by the mainstream media.
“We need to get to the bottom of this because this could happen again, they’re still conducting research in these same laboratories today,” Pompeo stated. “It’s being done in ways that were similar to over a year ago…this is dangerous.”
In the meantime, Pompeo said the Biden administration needs to put pressure on the Chinese Communist Party to compel them to allow an honest and thorough investigation to take place. Additionally, he urged the White House to hold the World Health Organization’s feet to the fire for allegedly aiding and abetting the cover-up of the outbreak.
Pompeo stressed the world needs to know how the virus came to be, so there isn’t another pandemic like it in the future. He’s holding out hope that someone within the lab will come forward with the truth, but warned it may take time.
