Commentary “History will figure that out on its own.” That is what Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) recently replied to Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. In a heated congressional exchange, Fauci derided the idea that the COVID-19 pandemic was due to the leak of a dangerous virus, engineered in the Chinese Wuhan virology lab—and in part funded by U.S. health agencies, on the prompt of Fauci himself. Fauci offered arguments from authority by citing his own expertise, as well as that of “card-carrying” specialists. But in truth, there is little evidence that any animal species has been found infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus or a close relative that causes COVID-19 or a similar illness. Many federal health experts increasingly believe the virus was manmade. A number argue that it was likely a product of gain-of-function research that was funded in part by a …