National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins plans to step down by the end of the year after nearly three decades at the agency, including 12 years at the helm, the agency announced Tuesday.
The 71-year-old physician-geneticist led the agency under three consecutive presidents — making him the first presidentially appointed NIH director to serve in more than one administration and the longest-serving NIH director.
His departure, first reported by POLITICO on Monday night, had been in the works for some time, one person familiar said.
“I fundamentally believe … that no single person should serve in the position too long, and that it’s time to bring in a new scientist to lead the NIH into the future,” Collins said in a statement.
Now this report comes from Politico, which is basically a state media organ, so of course they’re going to take the “No big deal; nothing to see here,” angle.
But I just don’t believe this has been in the works for “some time” and that Collins is only stepping down out of the goodness of his own heart, just like George Washington voluntarily stepping down after two presidential terms. Collins just cares about democracy too damn much, we’re to believe.
Sure, 12 years is a long time, but George W. McCoy served as NIH director for 22 years: from 1915 to 1937. It’s not as if Collins has been in his position longer than any of his predecessors.
And Anthony Fauci has been at the helm of NIAID (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) since 1984. Why doesn’t Fauci share Collins’ purported concerns about holding power for too long?
Why would the director of the NIH step down in the middle of what we’re told is the greatest public health emergency in over 100 years? Why now?
That’s like a general retiring in the middle of a war: it just doesn’t make sense, unless there’s some other reason for it that we’re not being told. Like Abraham Lincoln said, “it’s best not to swap horses while crossing a river.”
Does it make any sense for the director of the NIH to suddenly say in the middle of a global pandemic, the worst since the Spanish Flu of 1918, “You know what, I’ve been in this position for too long. It’s time for me to step aside and let someone else take the reigns”?
No, it doesn’t.
Now, Politico’s article alluded to a potential explanation here:
“This is the way it ought to be,” Collins said about the Food and Drug Administration’s decision late last month to limit boosters to certain vulnerable populations for now, despite the Biden administration’s pledge that boosters would launch broadly by Sept. 20. “Science sort of playing out in a very transparent way, looking at the data coming from multiple places, our country, other countries, and trying to make the best decision for right now,” he said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
Maybe he was pushed out by the Biden White House for being at odds with them on the booster shots. Or maybe he’s resigning because the Administration is going forward with booster shots anyway, despite the SCIENCE advising against it.
It could also have something to do with the recent release of documents, facilitated by The Intercept, which showed that the NIH, Anthony Fauci in particular, were, despite previous denials, engaged in funding gain-of-function research on bat coronaviruses in Wuhan, China. That’s what Breitbart is saying.
Raheem Kassam and Natalie Winters at National Pulse wrote an article about the “6 Scandals The Media Wont’ Tell You About Involving Outgoing NIH Director Francis Collins.” I’ll just summarize the headlines, you can click the link if you want more in-depth information:
1. Francis Collins Advises Chinese Military Proxy-Linked Group Working Alongside COVID-19 Gene Storage Firm.
2. Collins Admits Funding Wuhan Lab: ‘We Had No Control Over What They Were Doing.’
3. EVIDENCE: Fauci’s Bosses Signed Research Deals With Chinese Communist Military Front.
4. INVESTIGATION: U.S. Has Funded Over 250 Studies for Chinese Communist Military Researchers.
5. America Has Given Millions for ‘Research’ At Chinese Communist-Run Facilities Since COVID Outbreak.
6. U.S. National Institutes of Health Fires 54 Researchers As Ongoing Investigation Reveals 93% Failed to Disclose Links to Chinese Communist Party
At any rate, Collins’ sudden departure from NIH means he’s now the third high-ranking health official in the past several weeks to step down. Two FDA officials resigned over the booster shot not long ago.
Something is afoot.