Fauci’s Reaction to CIA Briefing on Virus Research

A newly uncovered diary reveals that Anthony Fauci displayed a defensive demeanor when briefed by the CIA about undisclosed coronavirus research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. He recalled, “He hit me so hard that I joked a little about whether I should bring a lawyer with me,” referring to his reaction during the meeting.

Fauci’s diary offers a rare glimpse into the confidential information the CIA had regarding the origins of the coronavirus. For instance, it detailed experiments involving coronaviruses taken from pangolins, which are known to harbor viruses closely related to COVID-19.

Senator Rand Paul published this diary on July 25. Fauci recently testified before Paul’s Senate Committee, where he opted to invoke the Fifth Amendment.

Recent documents confirm that the CIA intercepted signals intelligence during the peak of the pandemic. American spies picked up communications regarding undisclosed experiments at the institute, some of which allegedly involved collaboration with the Chinese military.

CIA officials informed Fauci that the Wuhan lab had collected pangolin viruses in the field and had received others from a research group in Beijing. These viruses were tested on “transgenic” mice—genetically modified mice—which allow viruses to adapt and potentially become more infectious to humans.

Fauci described the CIA briefing as “naive” and “very strange,” failing to provide any scientific reasoning to dismiss the intelligence agency’s concerns.

In 2019, the United States had disclosed that it was gathering signals intelligence between leaders in Beijing and Wuhan due to concerns over the outbreak. Requests for comments from Fauci and the CIA were not answered by the deadline.

According to Alina Zhang, author of VIRAL: The Search for the Origin of Covid-19, the findings suggest a clearer connection between the pangolin virus and Wuhan. She noted, “There were no live pangolins for sale at the market,” implying that a lab connection may be more plausible.

In early 2020, virologists speculated that pangolins could be the source of the coronavirus following a study that revealed a pangolin virus 99% similar to SARS-CoV-2. However, questions remained regarding the genetic similarities between them, especially considering key mutations that differentiate pandemic viruses.

The documents present significant evidence regarding the CIA’s findings on the pandemic’s origins. The agency assessed early on that it likely stemmed from a lab breach, an evaluation made shortly after CIA Director John Ratcliffe assumed office in 2025; however, the details underpinning this assessment have not been publicly released. A CIA whistleblower indicated that this information remains classified despite a 2023 law requiring its release.

The summer of 2021 was pivotal in the ongoing debate about the virus’s origins. In a document, it was noted that Fauci warned in June 2021 that the virus did not appear consistent with natural evolution, although he and a few others supported the wet market theory publicly.

On June 7, just days after the CIA briefing, Fauci met with Beth Cameron, senior director of intelligence programs at the National Security Council (NSC), where he was briefed on the intelligence presented to the President. This meeting may have stemmed from Fauci’s concerns about previous CIA press conferences, which he labeled as “disastrous.”

During this meeting, he encouraged the NSC to engage his group of virologists who had been focusing on the pandemic’s origins since early 2020. Unbeknownst to him, one of his virologist colleagues had heard about the pangolin virus from informal sources and deemed it significant, leading to further inquiry.

Additionally, another virologist in Fauci’s circle had previously raised alarms about the potential for the pangolin virus to leak from a lab in southern China.

A passage from Fauci’s diary indicates that the CIA briefing wasn’t his first rocky interaction with the agency, noting, “It was very similar to some of the very disappointing briefings I had previously received from the CIA.” Despite concerns about national security, Fauci has long supported gain-of-function research.

The documents also shed light on Fauci’s reactions to scientists and journalists who criticized gain-of-function research, which has raised alarms over global biosecurity.