John Jay once declared, “Those who own the country ought to govern it.” The citizens of the Republic are its rightful stewards.

Yet unelected bureaucrats, operating in the shadows, funneled taxpayer money into high-risk gain-of-function research—and when exposed, they scrambled to cover their tracks. Only now are we beginning to grasp the full extent of the federal government’s entanglement in dangerous research conducted within the borders of our greatest adversary.

For years, government agencies—along with likely universities and private corporations—have secretly financed these risky experiments—most notably at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV)—without public knowledge or accountability.

Recent investigations reveal as much as $53 million and counting in U.S. taxpayer dollars funneled to Wuhan through USAID, the NIH, and the EcoHealth Alliance.

The American people have a right to know how their money was spent, who authorized it, and what consequences those responsible will face—if any.

Congress must pass legislation, and the president must, to the extent allowed by law, issue an executive order mandating full disclosure of any financial support for gain-of-function research in Wuhan—or any other adversarial nation-state. This requirement must apply to:

• Federal agencies (e.g., NIH, USAID, CDC, DOD)
• State agencies
• Public and private universities
• Corporations, nonprofits, and NGOs

Noncompliance must result in severe legal consequences, including civil penalties, immediate suspension of federal funding, and criminal liability. The government must make noncompliance painful. Any federal employee who obstructs or hinders any investigation, disclosure, or destroys evidence must face immediate termination and prosecution, with all benefits, including pensions, permanently revoked by legislative and executive action.

Congressional Oversight and Investigations

Congress must launch an oversight investigation into USAID’s involvement in gain-of-function funding, including:

1. Public hearings to expose the extent of federal involvement in high-risk pathogen research.
2. Subpoenas for all material witnesses, including Anthony Fauci, Peter Daszak, former USAID officials, and agency personnel tied to Wuhan-related grants.
3. Full disclosure of all documents in their original, unredacted form, including those previously withheld or redacted in any capacity.
4. Independent forensic audits to track every taxpayer dollar spent on gain-of-function research.
5. Criminal referrals for officials who misled Congress or misallocated funds.
6. Strict enforcement against witnesses who defy subpoenas or commit perjury, including criminal contempt of Congress and perjury charges.
7. No complete shield from Biden-issued blanket pardons for criminal actions tied to gain-of-function research outside the pardon’s scope. A pardon may cover past offenses, but it does not exempt individuals from testifying under oath, and they remain fully liable for new crimes such as perjury or contempt of Congress.
8. Overhauls to USAID’s funding mechanisms to prevent future abuses and ensure strict congressional oversight of foreign research funding unless the agency is abolished outright.

Executive Action and Legislative Reforms

Congress must pass immediate legislation requiring full transparency and accountability in all gain-of-function research funding. Concurrently, to the extent allowed by existing law, the president should consider issuance of an executive order mandating:

1. Mandatory Disclosure: Every federal agency, state agency, or university must report all past and present financial ties to gain-of-function research within 90 days.
2. Severe Penalties for Noncompliance: Entities failing to disclose funding will face federal penalties, including financial sanctions, ineligibility for future government grants, and an immediate freeze on disbursement of federal funds during noncompliance.
3. Tightened Foreign Research Regulations: U.S. collaborations with foreign laboratories engaged in gain-of-function work must be subject to strict congressional oversight, mandated disclosure, and annual reviews.

Immediate Freeze on Foreign Research Funding

Given the deception surrounding U.S. funding to Wuhan, all federal foreign research spending must be frozen unless authorized by Congress or the president. 

From now on, no discretionary spending on foreign laboratories should occur without presidential approval or congressional authorization. Federal funding for any foreign laboratory conducting pathogen research must be subject to direct oversight by elected leaders in the Executive and Congressional branches, full financial disclosure, and stringent national security screening. The American people must never again be left in the dark on matters of such profound consequence.

Restoring Public Trust

We live in a moment when distractions abound and outrage is manufactured to obscure the truth. The progressive left and the legacy media will do everything in their collective power to stop accountability in its tracks. We cannot afford to lose focus or relent in this fight.

Congress and the Executive Branch must decisively restore public trust and strengthen national security. The Wuhan funding cover-up represents a direct betrayal of government accountability, and those responsible must face the consequences.

Bureaucratic excuses will no longer suffice. Transparency, accountability, and national security must come first.

No more secrecy. No more cover-ups. The American people deserve the truth.

Charlton Allen is an attorney, former chief executive officer, and chief judicial officer of the North Carolina Industrial Commission. He is the founder of the Madison Center for Law & Liberty, Inc., editor of The American Salient, and the host of the Modern Federalist podcast. X: @CharltonAllenNC

Image from Grok.