Fauci Privately Rejected Wuhan Market Origin While Publicly Defending It, Newly Released Diaries Show

Newly released diary entries from Dr. Anthony Fauci reveal that he privately concluded as early as January 2020 that the Wuhan seafood market was not the original source of COVID-19, despite publicly defending the market-origin theory for years afterward. The journals, released by Sen. Rand Paul ahead of Fauci’s Senate testimony, have intensified scrutiny over the former White House COVID adviser’s handling of the pandemic.

In a diary entry dated Jan. 26, 2020, Fauci wrote that epidemiological and genomic evidence indicated the first human infection occurred in early December 2019 and “was not connected to the market.” He further concluded that the Wuhan market was “not the source” but instead acted as an “amplifier” after the virus had already begun spreading among people. At the same time, Fauci maintained in his private notes that he believed the virus had originally jumped from animals to humans somewhere outside the market.

Despite those private conclusions, Fauci continued for years to publicly describe the Wuhan market as the most likely origin of the pandemic. Throughout 2020 and 2021, he pointed to the market as the probable site where the virus emerged, and as recently as 2024 he reiterated that position in congressional testimony and in his memoir, citing scientific literature supporting a natural spillover event.

The diary entries also reveal Fauci’s early concerns about asymptomatic transmission. On the same day he questioned the market-origin theory, he wrote that reports from Chinese health officials suggesting people could spread the virus before showing symptoms had “enormous implications” for the U.S. response. Yet just two days later, Fauci publicly stated that symptomatic individuals, rather than asymptomatic carriers, were the primary drivers of respiratory outbreaks.

Former Trump administration officials said they were surprised by the disclosures. Ken Cuccinelli, who served on the White House Coronavirus Task Force, said Fauci never shared those private conclusions with fellow task force members even though the virus’s origin was a major topic of discussion during the administration’s early response.

The newly released journals come as debate over COVID-19’s origins continues. While some U.S. intelligence agencies have assessed that a laboratory-related incident is the most likely explanation, others continue to favor a natural spillover, and no definitive conclusion has been reached. Fauci is scheduled to testify before Sen. Rand Paul’s Senate committee this week, where lawmakers are expected to question him about the diary entries and the broader federal response to the pandemic.