The Trump administration pressured the Food and Drug Administration to authorize the first COVID-19 vaccines and unproven treatments for political purposes, according to a new report issued Democrats on the House select subcommittee on the coronavirus crisis.
Senior administration officials fought for the reauthorization of hydroxychloroquine as a treatment, despite studies finding it was ineffective, and tried to block the FDA from collecting additional safety data for vaccines in a rush to get them out before the 2020 election, reported Politico.
“The Select Subcommittee’s findings that Trump White House officials deliberately and repeatedly sought to bend FDA’s scientific work on coronavirus treatments and vaccines to the White House’s political will are yet another example of how the prior Administration prioritized politics over public health,” said House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-SC), who also chairs the subcommittee. “These assaults on our nation’s public health institutions undermined the nation’s coronavirus response."
Former trade adviser Peter Navarro played a central role in these efforts, along with Steven Hatfill, an adjunct virology professor at George Washington University, and the report found they tried to discredit prominent health officials -- including Anthony Fauci, whose email use the pair wanted to investigate just before the election to benefit Donald Trump.
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The report stated: "Dr. Hatfill outlined a plan for Mr. Navarro to have DOJ 'start an investigation of the Fauci Panel—their emails and other communications' in order to 'shut them up for a bit,' and then 'pull Hahn in and ask him to re-establish the EUA,' contending Dr. Hahn was 'weak and will fold when he sees what is going on.' Dr. Hatfill expressly tied the timing of these actions to when voting in the November presidential election would begin, assuring Mr. Navarro: 'Within 10-14 days of the start of HCQ outpatient treatment—figures should start to decrease,' concluding: 'Is that not about the same time that some sort of voting goes on ??'"
The report found evidence that Navarro and Hatfill had used a private email server for federal communications, and the Department of Justice has sued Navarro to turn over other emails sent from his personal account related to presidential business.
Trump officials also tried to pressure the FDA into authorizing convalescent plasma around the time of the Republican National Convention, according to emails uncovered during the investigation.
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