Lancet Says No to Senate Testimony on COVID Origins

The top medical journal decided it would not give evidence to a U. S. Senate probe about where the COVID‑19 outbreak began. The editor, Richard Horton, told a news event in Barcelona that the journal would not participate in what he called an “administration that has attacked some of the foremost scientists of our age. ” He pointed to President Trump’s treatment of Dr. Anthony Fauci, the former head of the U. S. Centers for Disease Control, as an example. Horton explained that Fauci has faced threats and criticism from Trump and other Republicans, even after the president ended his federal security detail. The journal’s refusal to testify is part of a broader pattern: in February it said it had been asked by the Senate to hand over all coronavirus records from 2018 to 2022, including emails and research notes. The same request was made to the journal Science.The inquiry is led by Senator Rand Paul, who wants to know why U. S. money was given to a Wuhan virology lab. Paul’s committee focuses on homeland security and government affairs. He has been asking questions about the events in late 2019 that may have led to the global pandemic. Most scientists and the World Health Organization believe the virus jumped from animals to humans. However, investigations have been slow because China has not released enough data. U. S. intelligence agencies last year suggested that a laboratory leak was probably the source. Horton said the Senate’s focus on Wuhan still feels like “perseverating” over past events. He is not willing to support a committee that he believes has already made up its mind about the virus’s origins.