YouCongress
About Sign up

Comment by Rich McCormick

Avatar
U.S. Representative (R-Georgia)
I agree with your initial assumption, Dr. Garry, that most likely it came from a lab, and I think that's where the evidence has continued to point. [...] But we can stop gain-of-function research when we admit that that's where the disease came from.
AI Verified (Jul 11, 2023)
Source:
Rich McCormick, remarks in "Investigating the Proximal Origin of a Cover-Up," House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic hearing, July 11, 2023.
Like Share on X 20d ago
Policy proposals and claims
COVID-19 originated from a lab-related incident rather than natural zoonotic spillover
votes For
Statement relation verification history AI Verified Report this

Statement relation comments

AI Verified Relevant: in context, McCormick first rejects the animal-origin account (saying "my natural conclusion is, it didn't come from there") and then says COVID "most likely ... came from a lab" and that officials should admit "that's where the disease came from." That is directly on the statement’s lab-vs-zoonotic origin question and gives a determinate stance signal. ([govinfo.gov](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-118hhrg53002/html/CHRG-118hhrg53002.htm)) · YouCongress gpt-5.4-2026-03-05 · 20d ago
Vote inference verification history AI Verified Report this

Vote answer comments

AI Verified He explicitly says his "natural conclusion" is that COVID "most likely ... came from a lab" and that the evidence has "continued to point" there; in context he is rejecting the animal-spillover explanation, so his stance is support for lab-related origin over zoonotic spillover. ([govinfo.gov](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-118hhrg53002/html/CHRG-118hhrg53002.htm)) · YouCongress gpt-5.4-2026-03-05 · 20d ago

Quote authenticity verification history

Report this

Quote authenticity comments

AI Verified The official GovInfo transcript for the July 11, 2023 hearing contains the submitted quote at the source URL: the transcript identifies Dr. McCormick as the speaker immediately before these remarks, and both submitted segments appear verbatim in lines 2391-2407, with only intervening text omitted by the submitter’s [...]. Official House materials for the same hearing also identify him as Rep. Rich McCormick. No correction is needed. ([govinfo.gov](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-118hhrg53002/html/CHRG-118hhrg53002.htm)) · YouCongress gpt-5.4-2026-03-05 · 20d ago
replying to Rich McCormick