Most likely voters are unsurprised by the Biden administration affirming the once-disputed lab leak theory, a Rasmussen Reports survey released Tuesday found.
The survey asked respondents, “Are you surprised by the report that COVID-19 came from the Wuhan lab, or had you already believed this before the recent report?”
The question follows Biden’s Department of Energy admitting that the coronavirus likely stemmed from a lab leak, despite officials, such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, dismissing it as a “circular argument” early on in the pandemic.
Most, 67 percent, said they “already believed” the theory that the virus leaked from a lab in Wuhan, China. One in five said they are “surprised” by that news, and 13 percent remain unsure.
Despite the partisan nature of the coronavirus and subsequent response to it, most Democrats (53 percent), Republicans (81 percent), and independents (66 percent) said they already believed the lab leak theory prior to the Biden administration admitting it.
Watch as Sen. Marsha Blackburn addresses Biden administration’s original denial of the Wuhan lab leak theory:
Further, the survey found 65 percent expressing that it is at least somewhat likely that some U.S. officials were involved in the cover-up of China’s role in the pandemic. Of those, 48 percent believe it is “very likely.” Further 55 percent of Democrats, 77 percent of Republicans, and 61 percent of independents believe it is at least somewhat likely that some U.S. officials were involved in a cover-up over China’s role in the pandemic.
Additionally, most, 55 percent, said U.S. health officials did a “poor” or “fair” job in dealing with the virus. In that same vein, a plurality, 49 percent, indicated they were not surprised by reports of masking not being effective against the coronavirus, asserting that they already believed that.
The survey was taken March 1-2 and 5 among 1,000 likely U.S. voters and has a +/- 3 percent margin of error. It comes on the heels of Republican unearthing more information on the origins of the coronavirus and subsequent response of U.S. health officials.
A March 5 memo sent to members of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic found that Dr. Anthony Fauci, former White House medical advisor and former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director, actually commissioned and approved of a paper angling to disprove the lab leak theory. He would go on to cite this paper in his defense against the lab leak theory from the White House podium.