Two Republican lawmakers are demanding a House investigation into what role the Chinese Communist Party played in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reps. Steve Scalise, R-La., and James Comer, R-Ky., called on the Democrat leadership on both the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis and the House Committee on Oversight and Reform to probe the origins of COVID-19.
Their demands came in a letter to Select Subcommittee Chairman James Clyburn, D-S.C., and Oversight Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney D-N.Y.
"There is evidence the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) started the pandemic, covered it up, and is responsible for the deaths of almost 600,000 Americans and millions more worldwide," the two lawmakers said in the letter. "These questions are not a diversion as Speaker (Nancy) Pelosi has stated — they get to truth and accountability,
"The House Democrat majority’s refusal to follow the science, listen to the experts, and investigate the origins of COVID-19 raises serious questions about the credibility of the Select Subcommittee because we are uniquely positioned to find the truth, and seeking those answers is squarely within our mandated jurisdiction.
"Last year, House Republicans repeatedly called for Democrats on the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis and the Committee on Oversight and Reform to join our effort to hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable for its role in causing the global COVID-19 pandemic. In light of new evidence, and your ongoing refusal to acknowledge legitimate questions related to the CCP, we are writing to renew our long-standing request for a full investigation of China’s liability.
"This matter is more urgent in light of a report yesterday that three researchers from China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology became ill and sought hospital care in November 2019, according to U.S. intelligence sources. It should concern Subcommittee Democrats that the Wuhan Institute is withholding ‘raw data, safety logs and lab records on its extensive work with coronaviruses in bats.’
"The Democrat House majority’s inactions, since the formation of the Select Subcommittee within the Committee on Oversight and Reform, appear intended to advance a political narrative at the expense of accountability for the CCP. We hope you will abandon this partisan agenda and join our investigation into the origins of COVID-19.
And in a tweet, Scalise noted: "Just sent a letter to the Democrat chairman of the Coronavirus Committee demanding we investigate China and COVID's origins. Even (Dr. Anthony) Fauci is calling for China to be investigated. Yet House Dems refuse to even hold a hearing on this. Why are they aiding in China's cover-up?"
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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