>> Bill: THANKS, RICH EDSON
LEADING OUR COVERAGE FROM THE
STATE DEPARTMENT.
>> Dana: MORE NOW WITH MIKE
POMPEO.
WE’RE GLAD TO HAVE YOU HERE
THIS MORNING.
I WANT TO TAKE YOU BACK TO MAY
OF 2020 AND WHAT THE MEDIA WAS
SAYING ABOUT THIS IDEA.
"THE NEW YORK TIMES" HEADLINE
SENATOR TOM COTTON REPEATING A
FRINGE THEORY.
TRUMP IS SAYING IT BUT NO
EVIDENCE.
"WASHINGTON POST" SAID THIS IS
POSSIBLY MEDIA MISINFORMATION
FROM CONSERVATIVES.
HERE WE ARE A YEAR LATER.
THE REASON I ALWAYS PAID
ATTENTION TO WHAT -- I ALWAYS
PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU’RE
SAYING BUT ON THIS IN
PARTICULAR YOU WERE IN A
POSITION TO KNOW ABOUT THIS
INTELLIGENCE.
IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN SAY
TODAY THAT PERHAPS YOU WEREN’T
ABLE TO SAY A YEAR AGO?
>> DANA, WE SPENT A LOT OF TIME
WORKING ON THIS PROBLEM AND
JANUARY WE WERE ABLE TO
DECLASSIFY A LOT OF MATERIAL I
KNEW ABOUT MUCH EARLIER.
I MADE REMARKS IN MAY OF 2020
TALKING ABOUT THIS RISK.
AND IT WAS OUTRAGEOUS TO SEE
SCIENTISTS, EVEN GOVERNMENT,
U.S. GOVERNMENT SCIENTISTS
DENYING THIS WHEN THEY HAVE
SURELY MUST HAVE SEEN THE SAME
INFORMATION I SAW.
THAT INCLUDES DR. FAUCI AS WELL.
WE NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED
HERE.
THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY
KNOWS WHAT HAPPENED HERE AND
WHERE IT BEGAN.
THESE THREE INDIVIDUALS WHO
BECAME SICK, SYMPTOMS WERE
CONSISTENT WITH WHAT SOMEONE
WOULD GET IF THEY HAD COVID-19.
WUHAN VIRUS.
WE NEED TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF
IT.
IT COULD HAPPEN AGAIN.
THEY’RE CONDUCTING RESEARCH IN
THE SAME LABORATORIES TODAY
DONE IN WAYS SIMILAR TO WHAT
HAPPENED BACK OVER A YEAR AGO.
THIS IS DANGEROUS.
WE COULD END UP WITH SOMETHING
MUCH LIKE THIS AGAIN BEING SET
UPON THE WORLD.
THE UNITED STATES HAS A
RESPONSIBILITY TO DEMAND THE
CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY GIVES
US THE THINGS THEY KNOW.
THEY KNOW THE ANSWER TO THESE
THINGS AND REFUSE TO HAND OVER
THIS INFORMATION.
>> Bill: THE WORLD MAY DEMAND
IT ALONG THE WAY BUT THE PARTY
IN BEIJING ACTS DIFFERENTLY.
WHO IS TO SAY WE’LL EVER GET A
STRAIGHT ANSWER?
>> WILL, I THINK WE EVENTUALLY
WILL.
SOMEBODY WILL HAVE WORKED IN
THAT LABORATORY AND DECIDE THEY
CAN SNEAK OUT OF CHINA AND TELL
THE TRUTH I’M CONVINCED.
SADLY, I DON’T THINK IT WILL
HAPPEN IN A TIMELY FASHION.
WHAT CAN THE WORLD DO AND HOLD
CHINA ACCOUNTABLE?
MANY WAYS.
WHY ON EARTH WOULD YOU REJOIN
THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION
THAT REWARDS THE CHINESE.
THEY COLLUDED TO KEEP THIS
INFORMATION OUT OF THE HANDS OF
THE WORLD.
SO THERE ARE MANY THINGS THE
UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT COULD
DO TO IMPOSE REAL COSTS ON THE
CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY UNTIL
THEY COME CLEAN.
WE KNOW THEY COVERED UP THIS
VIRUS.
I’M CONFIDENT WE’LL FIND THE
EVIDENCE CONSISTENT WITH A LAB
LEAK AND THAT’S WHAT WE’LL SEE.
IF I’M WRONG I HOPE THE CHINESE
COMMUNIST PARTY WILL COME
FORWARD AND MAKE A FOOL OUT OF
ME.
>> Bill: IF THIS IS TRUE AND IT
HAPPENED IN NOVEMBER OF 2019,
IF ONLY THE WORLD WOULD HAVE
KNOWN.
THINK ABOUT HOW MUCH GRIEF THIS
PLANET WOULD HAVE BEEN SPARED.
>> BILL, I REMEMBER TALKING
WITH DR. REDFIELD ABOUT THIS AT
GREAT LENGTH.
WE WERE WORKING SO HARD.
HHS, WE WERE WORKING SO HARD TO
GET THIS INFORMATION IN EARLY
JANUARY OF 2020 WHEN WE WERE
TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS
ABOUT TO HIT THE WORLD.
THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY HAD
GONE COMPLETELY DARK.
THEY WOULDN’T TAKE PHONE CALLS
OR ANSWER OUR QUESTIONS.
WE SENT INQUIRIES.
WE COULDN’T GET A STRAIGHT
ANSWER.
AMBASSADOR COULDN’T GET A
STRAIGHT ANSWER.
CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY KNEW
THEY HAD THE PROBLEM AND DIDN’T
WANT THE WORLD TO KNOW IT AND
THEY STILL HAVE A PROBLEM THEY
STILL DON’T WANT US TO KNOW IT.
>> Dana: THE WORST MANMADE
DISASTER IN THE HISTORY OF THE
PLANET.
SOMEONE NEEDS TO BE HELD
ACCOUNTABLE.
THIS IS BRAZEN OVER THE WEEKEND
RUSE BELARUS HIJACKED A PLANE
TO DIVERT THE PLANE SAYING
THERE WAS A BOMB THREAT.
FOUR RUSSIAN CITIZENS ARE TAKEN
OFF THE PLANE WHEN IT LANDS AND
THE OPPOSITION LEADER TO THE
BELARUS PRESIDENT BASICALLY
ARRESTED AND THROWN IN JAIL.
ANTHONY BLINKEN WHO HAS THE
SECRETARY OF STATE POSITION
SAID THIS.
WE STRONGLY CONDEMN THE
REGIME’S SHOCKING ACT TO DIVERT
A COMMERCIAL FLIGHT AND ARREST
A JOURNALIST.
WE’RE COORDINATING ON NEXT
STEPS.
WE STAND WITH THE PEOPLE OF
BELARUS.
WHAT ELSE NEEDS TO BE DONE HERE?
>> THERE ARE LOTS OF THINGS THE
ADMINISTRATION COULD DO.
THE FIRST INSTANCE THIS IS THE
E.U.’S RESPONSIBILITY TRAVELING
ACROSS THE EUROPEAN PLACES.
THEY HAVE LOTS OF INFLUENCE.
NATO HAS THE ABILITY TO DO
THINGS AS WELL.
THERE ARE MULTIPLE ENTITIES
THAT COULD TAKE REAL ACTION TO
IMPOSE COSTS ON THE BELARUS
LEADERSHIP THAT DEMANDED THIS.
IT IS OUTRAGEOUS TO PULL A
COMMERCIAL AIRPLANE OUT OF THE
AIR JUST TO GET YOUR HANDS
AROUND THE JOURNALIST.
THIS WASN’T LIKE THERE WAS A
TERRORIST ON THE PLANE OR A
IMMEDIATE THREAT TO ANYBODY ON
THE AIRPLANE.
AN EFFORT TO GET AT SOMEONE WHO
WAS GOING TO SAY SOMETHING THEY
DIDN’T LIKE.