Durham’s ‘chilling’ revelations, what RFK Jr. gets right and other commentary

From the right: Durham’s ‘Chilling’ Revelations

John Durham’s testimony before Congress, argues David Marcus at Fox News, should “chill” Americans “to the core.” It revealed Hillary Clinton’s campaign was “funneling” false information to the FBI, that the agency closed “its investigation on Clinton’s mishandling of classified materials with no charges” even as it opened “a case on [Donald] Trump under false pretenses” and that the agent running the bogus Trump-Russia probe “was never shown key information” showing the Clinton campaign as the source. Worse, the “very same Department of Justice” is “not just once again investigating Trump as he runs for president, but indicting him.” “Maybe if Democrats took this matter remotely seriously,” we could “rebuild faith in these institutions.” Instead, we get “farcical harping about Trump and Russia.”

Libertarian: Lab-Leak’s Looming Lessons

If newly revealed intel reports are accurate — that Wuhan lab scientists doing gain-of-function research contracted the earliest cases of COVID-19 — “the implications are huge,” declares Reason’s Robby Soave. It would mean the lab “probably unleashed a killer pathogen on the rest of the planet, and the Chinese government attempted to cover it up.” And that “all the mainstream journalists, establishment scientists, and social media moderators who derided” lab-leak adherents as “conspiracy theorists were stunningly wrong.” It should serve as a “lesson to all the entities — many of them state-funded — that have made policing alleged misinformation their seminal issue.” Meanwhile, President Biden & Co. should tell the “truth” about the issue “so all responsible parties can ultimately be held accountable.”

Medical expert: What RFK Jr. Gets Right

Some things RFK Jr. “says about biomedicine” are “wrong or overstated,” concedes oncologist/epidemiologist Vinay Prasad at The Free Press. “But he also gets some things right, including deep truths” about the public’s “epidemic of distrust.” Including that “lockdowns were antithetical to public health,” that prolonged school closure was detrimental and that “regulatory agencies are held captive by the corporations the agencies are supposed to protect us from” (as well as his opposition to COVID vaccine mandates). He’s wrong on ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine and childhood vaccines causing autism. Even so, “Kennedy will be an important force in the Democratic Party,” though he’s “currently being dismissed by elites as a guy with a famous name and nutty ideas.”

Space beat: Heading Off Disastrous Risks

“Washington is issuing dire warnings” about the “escalating risks to American, allied and commercial assets in space,” notes Eric Ingram at The Hill. Rightly so: “Attacks on our satellites would blind U.S. armed forces, disrupt weapons systems and endanger national security in numerous other ways.” They could cut off everyday citizens “from the very conveniences, capabilities and critical infrastructure that define modern life.” And “space isn’t just contested and competitive — it’s congested,” with debris posing “immense” dangers. Better “in-space visibility” can help “make sense of the space domain and steer satellites out of harm’s way.” Expanding this capability must be a top priority: US military readiness in orbit and “peaceful coexistence in space” are at grave peril “if we can’t develop this transparency.”

COVID desk: CDC’s Vax Corner-Cutting

The “CDC did not wait” to recommend COVID vaccines for pregnant women, charges Dr. Marty Makary at Tablet — it went ahead with “no randomized trial data” available. “In other words, women don’t need to know. Just get vaccinated.” But a Swedish study found “an adjusted 26% increased risk of menstrual disturbance after the COVID vaccine in women age 12-49.” And a US study found an association with a reduced rate of pregnancy, post-vax. So: “Is the COVID vaccine safe in pregnancy? Probably. But cutting corners on research and pushing vaccines without data is dangerous. It’s probably why 58% of women under age 50 say they do not trust public health officials.” And “trust in the CDC is down from 69% pre-pandemic to 44% today. Dishonesty has consequences.”

— Compiled by The Post Editorial Board