National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) head Dr. Anthony Fauci is facing renewed criticism, this time over allegations that his agency funded horrifying experiments on dogs.
According to The Hill’s Changing America, a nonprofit entity called the White Coat Waste Project says Fauci’s division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) helped pay for research in which live beagles were ravaged by insects at a North African facility.
The dogs are said to have had their vocal cords cut so that laboratory staff would be able to work without having to hear the animals’ wails.
“These dogs were subject to some of the cruelest treatment imaginable,” the White House Coast Project says on its website. “In a procedure called a ‘cordectomy,’ sometimes called ‘de-barking,’ the puppies’ vocal cords were slashed. Why? So Fauci’s white coats wouldn’t have to hear them cry.”
Lawmakers demand answers
The group also alleges that the dogs were left overnight in cages for days — sometimes more than a week — at a time so they could become infected by parasites.
As Changing America notes, reports of the sick experiments have prompted an outcry on Capitol Hill, with lawmakers from both sides of the political aisle announcing this week that they want answers.
South Carolina Republican Rep. Nancy Mace sent a letter on Sunday to Fauci expressing “grave concerns about reports of costly, cruel, and unnecessary taxpayer-funded experiments on dogs commissioned by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.”
Pointing to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request by the White Coat Waste Project, the congresswoman noted that some $1.68 million in taxpayer funds had been allocated to the research.
“While documents state that the ostensible purpose of this study was ‘to provide data of suitable quality and integrity to support application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other regulatory agencies,’ the FDA itself has recently stated that it “does not mandate that human drugs be studied in dogs,” Mace said.
Questions remain
The Republican wants answers from Fauci on how much has been spent on the research and whether non-animal experiments had been considered instead.
What’s more, Mace wants to know why the dogs had their vocal cords cut, given that the procedure appears “to be scientifically and medically unnecessary.”
Nearly two dozen other members of Congress signed onto Mace’s letter. While most were Republicans, nine Democrats also added their signatures. Could accountability finally be coming for Fauci?
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