Staff Reports
The Department of Defense Inspector General’s Office has uncovered a concerning lack of clarity regarding the allocation of US funds to Chinese bio labs. In a shocking revelation, it appears that the US military is unable to determine the exact amount of money that was funneled into these labs or the specific research projects it supported. To add insult to injury, the only reassurance we have that US funds were not involved in gain-of-function research comes from the unverified claims of military officials. Well, isn’t that just comforting?
Under the National Defense Authorization Act for FY2024, the DODIG was mandated to investigate the flow of Federal funds to Chinese research labs or for potentially risky experiments conducted in foreign countries from 2014 to 2023. Senator Joni Ernst brought to light that a whopping $50 million of American taxpayer money ended up finding its way into Chinese biolabs. Ernst rightfully expressed her concerns about the Pentagon negligently dishing out funds for research that could pose a threat to national security. It’s mind-boggling to think that while our bureaucrats are handing out cash left and right, China doesn’t even have to resort to stealing our research anymore.
Due to limitations in the DoD's tracking systems, the full extent of DoD funds provided to Chinese research laboratories for research related to enhancement of pathogens of pandemic potential is unknown. Read our new report now: https://t.co/Ts7V7C15V9
— DoD Office of Inspector General (@DoD_IG) June 20, 2024
The Pentagon’s audit results, released recently, shed light on the baffling challenges faced by IG investigators in tracking the expenditure on such research. The lack of sufficient data and oversight within the DoD made it nearly impossible to determine the extent of funding directed towards Chinese labs or foreign pathogen research enhancement. The inadequate record-keeping and inability to trace subawards throughout contracts and grants highlight a serious lapse in financial accountability.
Moreover, the level of evidence provided to absolve any wrongdoing in utilizing the funds for prohibited research is downright laughable. The U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command officials identified certain research projects that involved potential pathogen enhancement abroad but claimed these activities did not pose a threat. Essentially, their defense boiled down to “we didn’t make the virus deadlier, we just made it infect rodents better.” If this flimsy logic is all it takes to clear someone of misconduct, we might as well do away with our entire justice system.
So, to sum it up, we may have unknowingly splurged around $50 million on dubious biomedical research, with no concrete understanding of who received the money or how it was utilized. But hey, as long as everyone involved says they did nothing wrong, I guess it’s all good. Another day, another government mishap that leaves taxpayers scratching their heads and wondering where their hard-earned dollars are really going.
