Fauci, in Private Diary, Reflected on Covid’s Origins and His Own Fame
NYT > U.S. > Politics — 2026-07-27 22:31:00 — www.nytimes.com
President Trump Promoted Lab Leak Theory Amid Early COVID-19 Uncertainty
In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, President Trump promoted the theory that the coronavirus may have leaked from a laboratory in Wuhan, China. This position became a focal point for some Republicans, who continued to push the lab leak hypothesis even as Democrats argued that Trump was attempting to blame China and distract from his administration’s shortcomings in managing the pandemic’s spread.
The debate over the virus’s origins intensified as new documents and diary entries from Dr. Anthony Fauci, then the government’s top infectious disease expert, were released. These records show Dr. Fauci grappling with evolving scientific opinions and uncertainty about the virus’s origins. While Dr. Fauci maintained openness to the possibility of a lab leak, he consistently stated his belief that the virus was natural in origin.
Despite the lack of consensus among scientists at the time, Trump’s early embrace of the lab leak theory set the stage for a prolonged political battle. When Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, his administration redirected the Covid.gov website to prominently declare, “LAB LEAK: The true origins of Covid-19.”
This episode highlights how President Trump’s public statements and positions on the origins of COVID-19 contributed to ongoing divisions over the pandemic response and the search for the virus’s source. The controversy underscores the lasting impact of presidential rhetoric on public debate and policy direction during a global crisis.