Editorial Note: Regardless of your views on the Covid-19 pandemic, it's undeniable that it impacted nearly every person here in the United States. Whether you got sick, lost a loved one, lost money, lost business, changed your routine, moved or started a new hobby, Covid-19 affected you. 

On February 2023 the U.S. House of Representatives formed the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic ("SSCP"). The SSCP was made up of both Democrats and Republicans with the goal to work together in a non-partisan way to determine the origins and impacts of Covid-19. Given Covid-19's widespread impact on the American people (Covid-19 and the related regulations, laws and restrictions didn't care if you were a republican or democrat), one would think the SSCP would be able to work together to give us a factual report. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.

Somehow, Democrats and Republicans came to starkly different conclusions and came out with TWO different reports on the investigation. To show how partisan it was the Democrats report was titled "Select Subcommittee Republicans Spent the 118th Congress Putting Politics Over People and Public Health".

This is exactly why I have formed Infoverus. The people of the United States deserve better. Infoverus is here to get you as fair and unbiased information as possible. In that effort, Infoverus has decided to review both SSCP reports and find areas of agreement between the Republicans and Democrats under the theory that if they have agreed on a particular issue it is likely true. 

After reviewing both the Republican and Democratic reports from the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, there are several notable areas of agreement. Despite their starkly different narratives and interpretations, the documents do share some core conclusions or acknowledge common facts. Below are the main points where both sides agree in principle:

Shared Conclusions Between Republican and Democratic Reports

1. Origins of Covid

• There is a loose similarity here between the reports. Both the Democratic and Republican reports recognize that a natural (zoonotic) origin and a laboratory-related incident are plausible explanations for the origin of COVID-19. Neither report claims definitive proof of either pathway.
• Democratic Report: Acknowledges that both theories, zoonotic and lab-based, remain plausible and should not be dismissed without further evidence. (pg. 6-8, para. A-B; “COVID Origins” section)
• Republican Report: Strongly emphasizes a lab leak theory and nearly concludes it as the definitive origin. However, it still notes that some intelligence agencies assess a zoonotic origin as possible, even if with low confidence.(pg. 1, para. A and pg. 3, para. B)

2. Chinese Government Obstructed Investigation and Lacked Transparency

• Both reports criticize the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for impeding global efforts to determine the origin of COVID-19. They agree that a lack of transparency from Chinese authorities, especially regarding early case data, viral sequences, and access to laboratories, hinders the ability to reach a definitive conclusion.
• Democratic Report: States that “without greater transparency from the Chinese Communist Party, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to know the origins of COVID-19”. (pg. 6, para. A)
• Republican Report: Asserts that the CCP withheld information, delayed outbreak disclosure, and controlled the World Health Organization's (WHO) inquiry, thereby obstructing a credible investigation.(pg. 182, Sec. I.C)

3. EcoHealth Alliance (EHA) and Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) Collaborated on Coronavirus Research

• Both reports discuss EcoHealth Alliance’s partnership with the Wuhan Institute of Virology. They agree that this collaboration included research on SARS-like coronaviruses, and that EHA submitted a proposal (Project DEFUSE) involving potentially risky research techniques.
• Democratic Report: Acknowledges the DEFUSE proposal and notes the similarity of that research to SARS-CoV-2 characteristics, though it does not assert causation.(pg. 13, para. ii)
• Republican Report: Highlights the same proposal and draws a stronger link between it and the potential lab origin theory. (Section II.A, pg. 58 and pg. 108–119).
• What is the EcoHealth Alliance?
• EcoHealth Alliance is a U.S.-based nonprofit that conducts scientific research on emerging infectious diseases. The organization has collaborated for years with the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) and Dr. Shi Zhengli on coronavirus research.
• Both reports highlight that EcoHealth received federal grants, notably from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), but failed to comply fully with grant requirements. These failures include late reporting, lack of transparency, and poor oversight of its subrecipient (WIV). 

4. U.S. Oversight of Risky Research Was Inadequate

• Both parties raise concerns about federal oversight of research involving potential pandemic pathogens. They cite gaps in the way the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) managed grants and evaluated biosafety risks.
• Democratic Report: Criticizes EHA for failing to submit timely progress reports and highlights concerns about NIH's responsiveness to compliance issues. (pg. 1, para. B; also see pg. 13)
• Republican Report: Claims systemic failures in oversight and criticizes NIH/NIAID leadership for not adequately managing gain-of-function research risks. (pg. 123, Sec. III.A)

5. The WHO’s Investigation Was Insufficient

• Both reports express skepticism toward the World Health Organization’s 2021 investigation into the origins of COVID-19, arguing that the process was compromised by undue influence from the Chinese government.
• Democratic Report: Mentions concerns about biased data collection at the Huanan Seafood Market and the influence of early assumptions shaped by China's narrative. (pg. 7, para. i; citing WHO report and Dr. George Gao)
• Republican Report: Explicitly states that the WHO report was “misleading” and controlled by the CCP, calling the Terms of Reference flawed. (pg. 182, Sec. I.C)

Source: Democrat Report and Republican Reports