Biologists battle invasive species infesting lower Kansas River
1 March 2023
TOPEKA (KSNT) – Kansas Senator Roger Marshall is calling for a bipartisan commission to tackle an investigation into the origins of COVID-19.
This comes shortly after the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) indicated there might be a greater basis for the belief that the COVID-19 pandemic originated from a Chinese lab leak.
The FBI tweeted on Tuesday, Feb. 28 that FBI Director Christopher Wray confirmed an assessment on the origins of COVID-19 show it likely came from a lab incident in Wuhan, China.
FBI Twitter excerpt.
On Monday, Feb. 27, the DOE reported it believes the COVID-19 pandemic could have started with a Chinese lab leak, according to NewsNation. The DOE reportedly changed its assessment of the lab leak theory in response to new intelligence. The theory of the lab leak is now considered by the DOE to be of “low confidence” which means the evidence to support the theory is incomplete and questionable.
Marshall told reporters during a press conference this changing stance on the origins of COVID-19 by the FBI and DOE is significant for Americans. He cited U.S.-sponsored Gain-of-Function (Gof) research, which consists of genetically modifying viruses to alter their transmissibility and infectiousness, as something that needs reform and further investigation. Marshall went on to say GoF research was a “ticking time bomb” that could go off again and should cease immediately.
Marshall said a 9/11-style commission consisting of politicians from both sides of the aisle and other experts should be formed. The commission’s purpose would be to “prove beyond a shadow of a doubt” the virus came from a lab in Wuhan, China. He went on to emphasize the investigation should not politicized.
A report from The Hill Tuesday revealed five major takeaways from the new stance of the DOE on the lab leak theory. Among them were reactions from Republicans in Congress, a heightening of tensions between the U.S. and China and uncertainty on whether or not the true origins of COVID-19 will ever be known.