Anthony Fauci, former US President Joe Biden’s top medical adviser, funded a laboratory in Wuhan, China and influenced intelligence assessments on the origins of Covid-19 by misleading Congress under oath, according to claims by outgoing Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.The allegation came after Gabbard accused Fauci of funding gain-of-function research at China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology.Announcing the release, Gabbard said the documents included previously unseen communications that, according to her office, demonstrate Fauci’s role in directing U.S. taxpayer funds toward research in Wuhan and her conversations with intelligence officials during the pandemic.“Today, on my final day as Director of National Intelligence, I am releasing never-before-seen communications and documents that will expose how Dr. Fauci provided millions of dollars to American taxpayers to fund dangerous for-profit research at the Wuhan lab, worked with political elements within the Intelligence Community to suppress the truth about his actions and conceal the lab-leaked origins of the virus, and lied to Congress while being sworn into office in 2024 Said. “It’s time for you to know the truth,” Gabbard said.According to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), Fauci, while leading the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), oversaw funding for gain-of-function research involving bat coronaviruses at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.ODNI alleged that the research is “now widely seen as the source of the unintentional laboratory leak that led to the pandemic” and claimed that Fauci worked with “political career leadership” within the intelligence community to suppress information about the origins of the virus and their role in funding the work.“The COVID-19 pandemic has caused tremendous hardship and pain for millions of our fellow Americans and countless others around the world. After years of lies, censorship and cover-ups, the American people deserve transparency, truth and accountability,” Gabbard said.He further said, “The tactics used to hide the truth come directly from the tactics of the deep state: self-serving leaders like Dr. are politicized. Fauci concealed his own wrongdoings and abuses of power, manipulated intelligence, lied to Congress, and undermined a duly elected President by restricting his access to critical facts necessary to keep the country safe. It’s time for the American people to learn the real story.”ODNI said the documents were uncovered during a yearlong public review conducted as part of President Donald Trump’s transparency agenda. The office also cited testimony from intelligence community whistleblowers who claimed they faced retaliation for challenging official findings regarding the origins of COVID-19.According to the release, Fauci maintained a close relationship with intelligence officials during the pandemic while working as a government-funded researcher, advisor and public spokesperson.ODNI alleged that Fauci and senior intelligence officials created a “self-serving circular reporting loop” in which NIAID-funded scientists influenced intelligence assessments that were later publicly cited as evidence against the lab-leak theory.The agency also claimed that communications included in the newly released documents contradict Fauci’s testimony before the House Select Subcommittee on the coronavirus pandemic in 2024.According to ODNI, Fauci was asked under oath whether he had communicated with intelligence agencies regarding viral research before, during, or after the pandemic and he responded, “Not to my knowledge regarding COVID.”The release also cites whistle-blower accounts alleging that intelligence analysts who supported the lab-leak theory faced marginalization, career setbacks, and intimidation.Fauci was granted pre-pardon by former President Joe Biden during the final hours of his presidency in January 2025.Explaining the decision, Biden said, “These are extraordinary circumstances, and I can’t in good conscience do anything else.”“Baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety and financial security of targeted individuals and their families,” he said.Biden also emphasized that pardons are not an admission of wrongdoing, saying, “The issuance of these pardons should not be construed as an admission that any individual is involved in any wrongdoing, nor should the admission be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any crime.”Fauci, who served as the United States’ leading infectious disease expert for nearly four decades, has long been criticized by some sections of the American political right over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.In January 2025, Trump revoked the government-funded security detail that was granted to Fauci through the National Institutes of Health.Defending the move, Trump said, “I think, you know, when you work for the government, at some point your security detail wears out and, you know, you can’t keep them forever.”Fauci previously said that threats against him and his family were motivated by conspiracy theories surrounding the origins of COVID-19.The latest disclosures follow another declassification effort announced by Gabbard on June 12. In that release, ODNI claimed it had uncovered evidence of long-standing US government funding for more than 120 biological laboratories in more than 30 countries, including facilities in Ukraine.ODNI alleged that some of these laboratories conducted research involving dangerous pathogens and, in some cases, for-profit experiments. It also claimed that information about the facilities’ location and funding was withheld from the public.“Despite the clear potential for devastating global impact of research on dangerous pathogens in biolabs, politicians, so-called health professionals like Dr. Fauci, and entities within the Biden administration’s national security team lied to the American people about the existence of U.S.-funded and supported biolabs and threatened those who attempted to expose the truth,” Gabbard said in a June 12 release.According to Fox News, Gabbard informed Trump that she would step down from her role to support her husband, Abraham Williams, who has been diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer.“At this time, I must step away from public service to stand by his side and fully support him in this fight,” Gabbard said.His resignation is scheduled to take effect on June 30. Following his departure, Bill Pulte, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, will serve as Acting Director of National Intelligence while continuing his current role overseeing the housing agency.