GOP Rep. Steve Scalise said the hearing would feature testimony from doctors, scientists, and “members of Congress” who’ve chosen to independently investigate matters.
Next week, House Republicans are planning to hold their own public hearing to learn about the origins of coronavirus.
Scalise: The hearing will feature testimony from experts and members of Congress
According to House Minority Whip Steve Scalise, the hearing will feature testimony from several respected scientists, doctors, as well as members of Congress who have been investigating the origins of the virus on their own.
The party lacks the needed subpoena power and does not have the ability to compel their witnesses to testify, due to their minority status. However, Scalise stated that GOP lawmakers in the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis would go ahead with their scheduled hearing on Tuesday.
🚨🚨 Coronavirus Committee Republicans will hold a hearing next week on COVID-19's origins and the Wuhan lab since Democrats still refuse to even schedule one.
Americans deserve answers. We can't let China get away with this. pic.twitter.com/MRmEJn1SdA
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) June 23, 2021
They will push through the hearing and voiced out their frustrations over the refusal of the majority to hold a public hearing dedicated to that matter.
Scalise also mentioned that he and other Republicans repeatedly asked the Democrat administration, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, to hold hearings, investigate the origins of COVID-19, and make China accountable for the spread, but to no avail.
Scalise added that in the United States, there were over 600,000 deaths due to COVID-19, and nearly four million worldwide died from the virus. Yet, Pelosi still declines to conduct a hearing to look at the origins of the virus.
The intelligence community has not yet reached a “definitive conclusion”
So far, the intelligence community was unable to reach a “definitive conclusion” about the origins of COVID-19; this comes despite Biden’s order to “redouble” efforts to look at the origins of the coronavirus and investigate whether it resulted from a laboratory leak in Wuhan, China or from a natural cause.
Biden gave the intelligence community 90 days to report the information collected and analyzed that would bring us closer to the “definitive conclusion,” as to its origins.
Then, earlier this month, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., and Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C. sent a letter to Scalise, the Oversight Committee chair. The Democrat representatives indicated that they, together with the science committee, intended to conduct work related to the origins of COVID-19.
Big new statement from Biden on Covid origins. "The U.S. Intelligence Community has 'coalesced around two likely scenarios' but has not reached a definitive conclusion on this question," he says. He adds that he wants another report in 90 days on the question. pic.twitter.com/yLw1qnewBs
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) May 26, 2021
However, the Democrat representatives wrote that they are concerned Scalise’s request might be designed to deflect accountability from the Trump administration’s “failure” to respond to the crisis, instead of obtaining new information that could protect the health of Americans.
Although the Democrat-controlled House Committee is investigating the origins of coronavirus, it hasn’t held a hearing on the matter.
In their defense, Chairman Adam Schiff said that the committee would hold off any hearings until after the 90-day time frame given to the intelligence committee.
Schiff said they must allow the intelligence committee (and other medical experts) to weigh in and assess the facts available to avoid any politically motivated and premature conclusions.
