In 2015, just a few years before the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world to its knees, Dr. Anthony Fauci and his National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) were experimenting with monkeypox, seeking to create a more transmissible version. 

As the House Energy and Commerce Committee sought the origins of COVID-19 in 2022, plans to tweak the monkeypox virus were uncovered. After a year and a half, the committee has just revealed its findings – not only was NIAID researching the virus and creating a more robust version of it, but they consistently lied to the Committee about their activities. 

Monkeypox is a viral disease related to smallpox but generally less severe. It was first discovered in monkeys in 1958, and the first human case was recorded in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The virus is typically found in West and Central African countries, though recent outbreaks have occurred elsewhere. In 2022, a wave of monkeypox infections spread worldwide, infecting thousands of people. 

Monkeypox is transmitted through contact with infected animals and humans or through contaminated materials. Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle aches, and a distinctive rash that forms blisters. Most people recover without treatment, but severe and potentially lethal cases can occur in people who have weakened immune systems.  

As of January 2024, more than 95,000 cases were reported globally, with 32,000 cases in the United States, with a May 2022 outbreak leading to the deaths of 58 citizens. While there is no cure or FDA recommendation for treating smallpox, vaccines are available. The vaccine is administered in two doses, about a month apart, with boosters recommended every two to ten years. Those who have previously received a smallpox vaccine may only need one dose. 

Monkeypox viruses come in two types: Clade I, which is linked to severe illness and has historically had a fatality rate of up to 11%, and Clade II, the strain behind the 2022 outbreak. Clade II is more easily spread but generally less severe, with a nearly 100% survival rate. 

But in 2022, researchers sought to create a hybrid strain of monkeypox by introducing the genes from the Clade 1 strain into Clade 2. The resulting virus would be far more transmissible and 15% more lethal than the original strains, potentially creating a pandemic. 

Researchers indicated that their experiments could have provided insights into how specific genes increase the lethality of monkeypox, potentially aiding in the creation of better treatments and vaccines. Scientists contended that their research did not seek to “enhance” a pathogen; instead, they aimed to swap natural mutations rather than generate new ones. They argued that the hybrid virus could not be more lethal than the existing strains. 

Dr. Richard Ebright, a microbiologist at Rutgers University in New Jersey, warned that the modified virus posed “an extremely high risk” to the public if it accidentally escaped. He noted that A lab-created monkeypox virus that is more deadly and just as contagious as the current human-infecting strain could potentially bypass vaccine protection and spread from high-risk groups to the general population. 

The House Energy and Commerce Committee report found that governmental agencies, including the NIAID, HHS, and NIH, deliberately “obstructed and misled” the committee by claiming the experiments were not planned or formally proposed. According to government agencies’ responses to the committee, the research was not approved or under consideration. 

However, the committee uncovered proof that the research was approved. Agencies then contended that the research was never carried out despite that approval. The committee alleges that the HHS has refused to provide documentation that proves the research was abandoned after the approval for experimentation was issued.  

As a result, the committee has recommended establishing an oversight committee to scrutinize NIAID-funded research regarding potentially dangerous pathogens and further suggested that final approvals for gain-of-function research be taken away from the agency. 

Experts were surprised to find that, despite lessons seemingly learned about gain-of-function’s role in the COVID pandemic, experiments like these are still being conducted in the United States. But Fauci was granted ultimate authority over “the science,” and it appears his ego is as dangerous as the viruses his agencies oversee.