COVID-19 could be the byproduct of another Trump reversal of Obama policy! MUST READ in NEWSWEEK!!

[ElementaryPenguin]

Newsweek uncovered the fact that in 2019 the Trump Administration reversed Obama's decision to halt financing a controversial risky gain-of-function program studying coronaviruses in bats in the Wuhan Lab in China. WE financed it through the National Institutes of Health!!

Obama had decided with experts that the program carried too much risk - since forcing the virus to leap into humans (which is what they were doing) could end up accidentally spreading a new virus from this lab in Wuhan!

So forget the defense that China hoisted this on us in secret!

The Trump Administration knew perfectly well what this was - having been involved in its creation!

The story doesn't cast Dr. Fauci in a very positive light either, unfortunately.

Trump evidently reversed Obama's reasoned policy - likely out of spite and defiance yet again!!

Biden should be underscoring this story!!

https://www.newsweek.com/dr-fauci-backed-controversial-wuhan-lab-millions-us-dollars-risky-coronavirus-research-1500741

[Turbineguy]

1. I'm pretty certain

the severity worldwide would be far less if trump hadn't sabotaged the in-place protection.

[ElementaryPenguin]

4. That's a certainty!

[Yavin4]

6. "the severity worldwide would be far less if trump hadn't..." been installed as president

by Putin.

There, I fixed it.

[Turbineguy]

7. Indeed

you did!

[ElementaryPenguin]

9. Ditto!

[mr_lebowski]

2. I recommend people read the article for themselves rather that rely on the synopsis in the OP ...

The program ended by Obama was not the one in Wuhan. The US involvement in the Wuhan one actually started under Obama in 2014.

There was no 'forcing the virus to leap to humans' either.

I would read it w/o considering the OP in fact as it will likely confuse your reading of the story. It's already a little hard to follow as written.

[ElementaryPenguin]

3. In 2017, the moratorium on the phase with gain-of-function work was lifted.

That moratorium was put in place as a result of pressure from the Obama administration.

As a non-scientist, I used the simplest language I could. But, according to the article, in essence - "spillover potential" - "refers to the ability of a virus to jump from animals to humans, which requires that the virus be able to attach to receptors in the cells of humans..."

"the project description refers to experiments that would enhance the ability of bat coronavirus to infect human cells..."


Which is PRECISELY what transpired.

The object of my post was to get people to read it.

I apologize for the inexactitude of my description, but respectfully, I don't believe my OP should be the focus of the controversy here.

[mr_lebowski]

5. Just saying people should read the article because the OP is imprecise ...

The original moratoriums were re: work done in the USA, not Wuhan.

I agree the OP should not be the source of controversy, and agree people should read the article

Though I'd add that the article could also be better-written ... by a LOT. Telling a story like this, you should start at the beginning and work your way forward chronologically. Don't write it freaking Pulp Fiction style.

Hopefully we'll get a better one in the New Yorker or Atlantic soon

[ElementaryPenguin]

8. I agree.

[ElementaryPenguin]

10. Shameless kick