Milwaukee City Wire

On November 16, 2023, U.S. Senator Ron Johnson, ranking member of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, addressed concerns to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra and HHS Inspector General Christi Grimm regarding the actions of Dr. David Morens, a senior scientific advisor at the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). Senator Johnson revealed a recently obtained email that suggests Dr. Morens may have obstructed oversight efforts and violated federal record keeping laws.

In a letter to Secretary Becerra and Inspector General Grimm, Senator Johnson included the text of an email sent by Dr. Morens on June 17, 2021. The email, sent from Dr. Morens' personal Gmail account to his colleagues, discussed a request from Senator Johnson and four other senators for documents related to the origins of COVID-19. Dr. Morens stated that he had retained "very few" records on these matters and preferred to receive correspondence on sensitive issues through his Gmail address.

Senator Johnson expressed concern that Dr. Morens may have intentionally deleted or destroyed records related to the origins of COVID-19, stating, "Dr. Morens' apparent actions may have directly obstructed my oversight efforts." He further criticized Dr. Morens' preference for using a personal email address, calling it an "apparent evasion of federal record keeping requirements and a complete disregard for transparency."

Senator Johnson requested that Dr. Morens appear before his Subcommittee staff for an interview and called on Secretary Becerra to provide complete responses to his previous letters by December 6, 2023. Additionally, he reiterated his request to Inspector General Grimm to investigate Dr. Morens' apparent violations of federal record keeping requirements and potential obstruction of congressional requests.

For more information on Senator Johnson's letters, the New York Post has published an article on the matter. The full letters to HHS and the Office of the Inspector General can also be found online.

These concerns raised by Senator Johnson highlight the importance of transparency and accountability in government agencies. It is crucial that officials comply with record keeping laws and provide complete and timely responses to congressional requests. The investigation into Dr. Morens' actions will shed light on any potential obstruction of oversight efforts and ensure that relevant documents related to the origins of COVID-19 are not being withheld.

To find out more, go to this link: https://www.ronjohnson.senate.gov/2023/11/sen-johnson-to-hhs-sec-becerra-and-inspector-general-grimm-niaid-official-s-actions-may-have-directly-obstructed-my-oversight-efforts