While politicians talk tough against China, we're still funding 27 of their animal testing labs
We’ve learned a lot about the government’s bizarre scheme to fund animal torture in labs over the past three years. But what continues to make the situation even stranger is the government’s unwillingness to cut the flow of taxpayer dollars to such practices in the labs of our foreign enemies.
From trade policies, to TikTok bans, there’s no shortage of tough talk aimed at China in DC. Yet many of those politicians refuse to even acknowledge the fact we’re continuing to fund animal torture there, a problem compounded by the communist regime’s lack of oversight or accountability in their labs, and the very likely possibility such funding led to the leak of COVID-19 in 2020.
Thanks to the advocacy of the White Coat Waste Project, a free market animal welfare organization, and to the leadership of Senators like Rand Paul and Joni Ernst, as well as Congresswoman Nancy Mace, the Wuhan lab in China was finally defunded earlier this year. But lest you think the work is over, it turns out, we still have 27 more labs to go there.
That’s right. The NIH lists 27 animal testing labs in China that are still eligible to rake in US tax dollars from the agency, and keep in mind, they’re far from the only governmental agency funding these kinds of projects.
Fortunately, there are some in Congress who aren’t letting the pressure up. Representatives Lisa McClain (R-MI) and Don Davis (D-NC), and Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) just introduced a new piece of legislation called the AFAR Act, which would prohibit the NIH from funding animal experiments in China, Russia, or other countries that have been deemed foreign adversaries by the US government.
So in short, let’s not ship tax dollars to sketchy labs in foreign countries that hate us to torture animals. This would seem to be an obvious, common sense step that literally anyone could get behind.
“No American tax dollars should ever go to funding research on animals in foreign countries, especially adversarial countries. We know what happened when we funded research labs in Wuhan, and it’s time we stop this dangerous funding once and for all. I am proud to introduce the AFAR Act with my colleagues Rep. Davis and Sen. Ernst.” said Congresswoman Lisa McClain
Representative Don Davis’ office also released a statement that read, “National security is about more than military funding. To protect our nation from another preventable pandemic, we must take steps to prevent dangerous animal experiments that can lead to the spread of disease. One solution comes in the form of the Accountability in Foreign Animal Research (AFAR) Act, legislation that prohibits federal funding for animal research and testing in China, Russia, Iran, and other foreign countries of concern. Hard-working taxpayers in eastern North Carolina and across America should not be paying for risky experimentation in countries not subject to regular oversight and accountability. It is as simple as that.”
And Senator Joni Ernst, who has been one of the most consistent and public voices pushing back on animal torture with taxpayer dollars said, “We successfully pulled the plug on US taxpayer funding to China’s Wuhan Institute and Russia’s labs—for now. The AFAR Act will guarantee not another penny will be spent subsidizing crazy and dangerous experiments, like putting cats on a treadmill or enhancing bat coronaviruses in Russia and China ever again. I applaud Reps. Lisa McClain and Don Davis as well as the White Coat Waste Project for their efforts exposing and putting an end to this wacky Washington waste.”
There’s good reason to think such efforts will be successful. Despite the ongoing effort to cover up Dr. Fauci’s tracks in DC, the advocacy of the White Coat Waste Project and the growing awareness about these issues amongst the public has already lead to significant cuts on grants that fund animal torture in foreign labs with public dollars.
Recently, Representative McClain also led a successful fight to cut off taxpayer funding for Russia’s President Putin’s deadly treadmills tests on kittens and all other animal labs in Russia.
Justin Goodman, Senior Vice President, White Coat Waste Project, said “As we first exposed in Wuhan, shipping taxpayer dollars to animal testing labs in China, Russia and other adversarial nations is a recipe for disaster. Our Worldwide Waste campaign has defunded the Wuhan lab, Putin’s kitten tests, and all Russian animal labs, but we’ve uncovered how dozens of animal labs in China are still eligible for more taxpayer money. Over 70 percent of taxpayers—Republicans and Democrats alike—oppose this reckless spending, and we applaud Rep. Lisa McClain, Rep. Don Davis and Sen. Joni Ernst for introducing the bipartisan AFAR Act to stop our money from flowing to foreign adversaries’ animal labs. Stop the money. Stop the madness.”
Hannah is a Fellow for The White Coat Waste Project, which is dedicated to exposing and curtailing the funding of animal torture with taxpayer dollars.
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