Articles

Almost two years since the first recorded case of COVID-19, the origin of this deadly virus remains a mystery.

In the early days of viral spread, the Chinese Communist Party blocked international efforts to enter the region for research.

The CCP also conducted faulty investigations, claiming to the World Health Organization (WHO) that there was no evidence of human-to-human transmission.

At the start of the pandemic, even the smallest information regarding detection, symptoms, and transmission could have saved thousands of lives worldwide. Instead of transparency and cooperation, the CCP chose dishonesty and deception.

It was recently reported that in November 2019, three researchers from China's Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) became sick with symptoms of COVID-19 and were hospitalized.

This level 4 "super lab," the only of its kind in China, conducts "gain-of-function research" which alters coronaviruses to be more lethal and transmissible.

Despite obstructing investigations into the source of COVID-19, China has always asserted that the disease first emerged in a wet animal market. CCP officials in Beijing also authored a misleading WHO report claiming it is "extremely unlikely that the virus came from a lab incident."

These official reports are usually conducted by independent virologists. While the origin of COVID-19 is still not known, the CCP's insistence on hiding information about a pathogen that caused the death of millions around the world raises significant questions.

The CCP must be held accountable for its pattern of reckless malignance. In May 2020, I introduced legislation that would help ensure China complies with a sovereign inquiry into the events that led to the COVID-19 outbreak, spread and global pandemic. Severe sanctions would be imposed for not cooperating.

Now, with increasing possibilities that a lab leak from the WIV may have spurred the pandemic, my colleagues and I are again requesting the House immediately begin investigations to hold the CCP accountable. Considering their past behavior, it is not surprising that the CCP has refused access to data, safety logs, or lab records from the WIV. I welcome my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to unite against the CCP's deceit. Republicans and Democrats together must make it clear that if the CCP continues to shroud themselves in secrecy, there will be accountability.

The millions of us who lost loved ones to COVID-19 deserve closure as to how the virus originated. If we don't send a message that their actions have been unacceptable, the CCP's pattern of deception will only escalate. Further, discovering the origins of COVID-19 will help prevent a similar outbreak from ever occurring again. Rest assured, I will continue to seek truth and accountability.