Mark Zuckerberg 'comes clean' in damning letter about Facebook's election interference and pandemic censorship



Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg told the House Judiciary Committee Monday that he now regrets the major role his company played not only in helping the Biden-Harris administration censor Americans' protected speech, but in suppressing critical information ahead of the 2020 election.

While unwilling to acknowledge its impact on recent American elections, Zuckerberg also indicated he will be terminating his "Zuck Bucks" scheme — ostensibly to alleviate some lawmakers' concerns about deep-pocketed partisans' election interference.

Although it's unclear whether Zuckerberg's admissions will be of any real-world consequence — impacting, for instance, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s censorship lawsuit against the Biden-Harris administration — the committee nevertheless characterized his letter as a "big win for free speech."

Suppressing dissenting voices

Zuckerberg said in his damning letter addressed to House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) that in 2021, senior officials from the Biden-Harris administration, including the White House, "repeatedly pressured our teams for months to censor certain COVID-19 content, including humor and satire, and expressed a lot of frustration with our teams when we didn't agree."

The committee has obtained ample evidence in recent months and years detailing the extent of Facebook's work with the Biden-Harris administration to silence criticism of the experimental COVID-19 vaccines, lockdown measures, and masking, along with other medically accurate information that undermined the Biden White House's preferred pandemic narrative, which it knew early on to be inaccurate.

'We own our decisions.'

For instance, an April 2021 email circulated by a Facebook employee, ostensibly on behalf of Zuckerberg and then-COO Sheryl Sandberg, noted that the Biden White House took issue with a "vaccine discouraging humorous meme," which it told the social media company to delete.

Blaze News previously reported that the verboten meme in question used the "Pointing Rick Dalton" template, borrowing a still from the 2019 film "Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood," in which Leonardo DiCaprio's character points out something on television.

This meme, which the Biden White House wanted erased from the platform, was captioned, "10 years from now you will be watching TV and hear .... 'Did you or a loved one take the covid vaccine? You may be entitled ...'" and was apparently shared over 385,000 times.

Besides memes and medical facts, Facebook also dutifully censored content about the COVID-19 lab-leak theory, which is now the most credible account.

In his Monday letter, Zuckerberg admitted that despite knowing the "government pressure was wrong" and that his company could have told the Biden-Harris administration to pound sand, the company decided anyway to oblige the state, take content down, and censor users.

"Ultimately, it was our decision whether or not to take content down, and we own our decisions, including COVID-19-related changes we made to our enforcement in the wake of pressure," said Zuckerberg.

While Facebook was more than willing to comply with the Democratic administration's demands, Zuckerberg — possibly cognizant that he may soon be dealing with a Republican administration — indicated that the company is "ready to push back if something like this happens again."

Election interference

Zuckerberg also acknowledged in his letter Facebook's suppression of an accurate report in the newspaper founded by Alexander Hamilton ahead of the 2020 election.

"The FBI warned us about a potential Russian disinformation operation about the Biden family and Burisma in the lead up to the 2020 election," wrote the Facebook CEO. "That fall, when we saw a New York Post story reporting on corruption allegations involving then-Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden's family, we sent that story to fact-checkers for review and temporarily demoted it while waiting for a reply."

"It's since been made clear that the reporting was not Russian disinformation, and in retrospect, we shouldn't have demoted the story," added Zuckerberg.

Among the concerns raised in the New York Post's suppressed report was that a Burisma board adviser thanked Hunter Biden for introducing him to Joe Biden about a year before Biden allegedly extorted the Eastern European country as vice president to get the prosecutor investigating Burisma fired.

The report also hinted that Joe Biden, through his son and his own actions, may have been a compromised candidate and, at the very least, untruthful.

'Your enemies rigged the election and were rewarded with the White House.'

While Facebook worked to suppress the report, elements of the intelligence community antipathetic to President Donald Trump — including active elements of the security state — swooped in to shield Biden in the final weeks before the election, releasing a public letter on Oct. 19, 2020, asserting that the Hunter Biden laptop story had "all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation" intended to hurt the Democrat's candidacy.

Michael Morell, a former CIA deputy director, later testified to Congress that he organized the letter to "help Vice President Biden" but, more specifically, to help "him to win the election."

Zuckerberg assured Jordan in his letter that Facebook, having helped deliver to Biden a firm grasp on the 2020 election-time narrative and possibly the White House, has since changed its policies and process "to make sure this doesn't happen again," noting that content is no longer temporarily demoted while so-called fact-checkers decide whether it's fit for public consumption.

The Facebook CEO also addressed the contributions he made during the last presidential election to "support electoral infrastructure."

Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, dumped over $400 million into grants allegedly aimed at helping with election administration and voter accommodation. Critics have suggested that "Zuck Bucks" was alternatively a partisan scheme aimed at turning out more Democratic votes.

"They were designed to be non-partisan — spread across urban, rural, and suburban communities," wrote Zuckerberg. "Still, despite the analyses I've seen showing otherwise, I know that some people believe this work benefited one party over the other. My goal is to be neutral and not play a role one way or another — or to even appear to be playing a arole. So I don't plan on making a similar contribution this cycle."

"Zuck Bucks" may not be necessary in this election cycle, given that the federal government is actively working on fulfilling Biden's Executive Order 14019, which may prove far more effective at mobilizing Democratic voters.

The response

While the committee called the letter a "big win for free speech," Blaze News columnist Auron MacIntyre noted, "No, a win occurs when your enemies pay a price. Is someone going to jail? Is someone getting impeached? Is anyone even getting fined? No, you just got a confession that your enemies rigged the election and were rewarded with the White House."

— (@)

Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) similarly suggested that the letter was too little, too late, writing, "Facebook may have changed the outcome of the 2020 presidential race. Four years later, we get a letter saying 'sorry.'"

"Mark Zuckerberg comes clean and finally admits what everyone already knows he and META did to influence the 2020 election," wrote Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-Wyo.)

Elon Musk responded to the letter, noting, "Sounds like a First Amendment violation."

Podcaster Patrick Bet-David speculated that there were three possible reasons Zuckerberg would have made these admissions: "1. He's being honorable[;] 2. He's done with the Dem party[; and/or] 3. He's getting ahead of a whistleblower."

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CIA had active contractors amongst cabal of intel officials who suggested Biden laptop was Russian fake



Scores of former intelligence officials ran block for Joe Biden ahead of the 2020 election after the New York Post threatened his campaign with damning facts about his son's laptop and its contents. It turns out that active elements of the security state similarly conspired to cure the narrative and thumb the scales in Biden's favor.

Background

Less than a month ahead of the 2020 election, the New York Post reported about the incriminating contents of Hunter Biden's laptop and raised various questions about then-candidate Joe Biden, especially about his shady ties to Ukraine.

The report noted, for instance, that a Burisma board adviser thanked Hunter Biden for introducing him to Joe Biden about a year before Biden allegedly extorted the Eastern European country as vice president to get the prosecutor investigating Burisma fired.

The report also painted Joe Biden as untruthful and referenced other damning evidence on his son's laptop, such as videos of Hunter Biden having sex and smoking crack and suggestions of questionable business with China.

Elements of the intelligence community antipathetic to President Donald Trump swooped in to shield Biden in the final weeks before the election, releasing a public letter on Oct. 19, 2020, asserting that the Hunter Biden laptop story had "all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation" intended to hurt the Democrat's candidacy.

Not one of the intelligence officials had apparently seen the evidence of which they spoke before signing the letter, and no signatory has since expressed regret.

Biden used the misleading letter, which was further spun by the liberal media, to great effect.

In his Oct. 22 debate with Trump, Biden said, "Look, there are 50 former national intelligence folks who said that what this, he's accusing me of is a Russian plan. They have said that this has all the characteristics — four — five former heads of the CIA, both parties, say what he's saying is a bunch of garbage. Nobody believes it except him and his good friend Rudy Giuliani."

Michael Morell, one of the former CIA directors Biden referenced, later testified to Congress that he organized the letter to "help Vice President Biden," but more specifically, to help "him to win the election."

Morell also made clear that the Biden campaign was involved and "helped to strategize about the public release of the statement."

According to Morell, the call he received from then-Biden campaign official Antony Blinken got the ball rolling on the deception.

74% of Americans surveyed told the Technometrical Institute of Policy and Politics in a 2022 survey that the FBI and the intelligence community deliberately misled the public and voters. 79% of respondents said that a truthful interpretation of the laptop would have likely changed the election's outcome more in favor of Trump.

The CIA versus Trump

The House Committee on the Judiciary, its Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence released a report Tuesday revealing that former CIA acting director Michael Morell and ex-CIA inspector general David Buckley were both active contractors with top secret clearances for the agency when they signed the letter.

The congressional investigators reached this conclusion on the basis of information provided them earlier this year by Robert Dugas, CIA deputy general counsel for litigation and investigations.

Morell has denied being a contractor at the time, telling the New York Post, "If you write that, you would [be] wrong."

Beside the possibility that unnamed signatories were similarly active spooks, the report noted that others "had special 'Green Card' access to the CIA at the time of the statement's publication, allowing them to gain entry to secure CIA facilities."

According to the report, former CIA chief of staff Jeremy Bash, the ex-husband of Thursday's moderator in the Trump-Biden debate, and former National Security Agency deputy director Richard Ledgett, were both serving the agency at the time they signed the letter as independent contractors with top secret clearances.

Other active elements of the CIA were also peripherally involved.

"High ranking CIA officials, up to and including then-CIA Director Gina Haspel, were made aware of the Hunter Biden statement prior to its approval and publication," said the report.

The agency conveniently refrained from seizing upon the "opportunity at that time to slow down the CIA's process for reviewing publication submissions and ensure that such an extraordinary statement was properly vetted."

The report suggested that the revelation about the active status of Morell and Buckley "raises concern that these officials abused the access of their positions to curate, promote, and received expedited approval of the statement."

Indeed, the PCRB continuously requested quick decisions from officials within the CIA and partners at ODNI about the status of publication of the statement. This occurred after Morell specifically requested an expedited review process and during a time when he had contracting status and was under consideration to be named President Biden's CIA Director.

The report also indicated that the signatories' decision to leverage their titles in favor of a narrative favorable to Biden "inappropriately embroiled the Agency in the domestic political process."

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Hunter Biden's laptop got him convicted. Intel officials who called it Russian disinfo remain unapologetic.



Hunter Biden was convicted today in part owing to the verified contents of his laptop, which the New York Post reported on before the 2020 election.

A cabal of former U.S. intelligence officials released an open letter on Oct. 19, 2020, regarding the Post's Oct. 14 report about the discovery and damning contents of Hunter Biden's laptop, which the FBI had "verified" one year earlier.

Among the 51 signatories of the letter were:

  • James Clapper, former director of national intelligence under Democratic President Barack Obama;
  • Michael Hayden, former director of the CIA under Obama;
  • Leon Panetta, former secretary of defense under Obama and CIA director;
  • John Brennan, former CIA director under Obama;
  • Glenn S. Gerstell, former general counsel for the National Security Agency;
  • Richard H. Ledgett Jr., former deputy director of the NSA;
  • Jeremy Bash, the former chief of staff both of the CIA and the Department of Defense; and
  • Michael Morell, former acting director of the CIA.

Their letter asserted that the Hunter Biden laptop story was likely a thing of Slavic fantasy — that the story had "all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation."

While Clapper, Brennan, and the other 49 so-called experts were willing to admit in the letter to both not knowing whether the Hunter Biden emails provided to the New York Post were "genuine" and having no "evidence of Russian involvement," they nevertheless suggested a "laptop op" designed "to discredit Biden ... would be consistent with some of the key methods Russia has used in its now multi-year operation to interfere in our democracy."

The letter was framed thusly by Politico and left uncorrected by the signatories: "Hunter Biden story is Russian disinfo, dozens of former intel officials say."

According to the House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, then-senior Biden campaign adviser and now-Secretary of State Antony Blinken got the ball rolling on this misleading and election-influencing letter. The letter was allegedly drafted with the aim of setting the narrative before the Oct. 22, 2020, presidential debate, wherein Biden ultimately used it to great effect. Blinken later denied conceiving of or soliciting signatures for the letter.

Even though the story was undermined by the letter and censored online, the laptop was real all along, and its contents — like those of Ashley Biden's troubling diary — were as authentic as they were incriminating. FBI Special Agent Erika Jensen made this especially clear in court last week.

'51 intelligence agents, that phony story. Remember?'

Former President Donald Trump recently suggested that the 51 officials who leveraged their perceived credibility and former status to shield Biden from the truth may soon face a comeuppance.

Trump was recently discussing false narratives spread by the Biden camp and broached the subject of the Hunter Biden laptop story.

"51 intelligence agents, that phony story. Remember? 'The laptop from Russia,' they said. And they should be prosecuted for what they did, okay?" said Trump. "Let's see what happens.

Ahead of Hunter Biden's criminal conviction, Fox News Digital reached out to the signatories of the October 2020 letter, asking whether they regretting misleading the nation. While some of the election-swaying former officials flatly say no, as in the case of Clapper, others doubled down.

Mark S. Zaid, an attorney representing Ronald Marks, Marc Polymeropoulos, Douglas Wise, Paul Kolbe, John Sipher, Emile Nakhleh, and Gerald O’Shea, suggested the letter was important and signing it was "patriotic."

Zaid even suggested that criticism of the letter amounted to disinformation but did not go so far as to pin blame on Russia.

"There continues to be by many a calculated or woefully ignorant interpretation of the October 2020 letter signed by fifty-one former intelligence officials concerning Hunter Biden's laptop," Zaid told Fox.

"A careful and objective reading of the document reflects that even today its content is accurate. It served as nothing more than a warning letter of what we have known for decades: certain foreign governments — including Russia — continue to try and actively interfere in our domestic affairs and our guard must remain vigilant. Every patriotic American should have signed that letter," added Zaid.

Signatory Greg Treverton, former chair of the National Intelligence Council, said, "What we said was true, we were inferring from our experience, and it did look like a Russian operation. We didn't, and couldn't of course say it was a Russian operation. Enough said."

Michael Hayden, who intimated late last year that Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Al.) should be removed from the human race, simply hung up the phone and dodged subsequent requests for comment.

The Post noted that Panetta defended the letter in July 2023, saying he had no regrets about signing it.

"I signed that letter for one reason, which was to make the American people aware that the Russians deliberately were engaged in a disinformation campaign in the United States and trying to impact on our election and trying to impact on our ability to have free and fair elections," Panetta told CNN.

Concerning the letter's additional spin in Politico, Zaid told the Post, "With respect to the Politico story, had I been representing my clients at the time I would have certainly asked for them to modify their headline as it is too categorically and broadly asserted a conclusion that the letter did not."

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Russiagate hoaxers beg Congress to preserve intelligence agencies' ability to spy on Americans without warrants



Former intelligence officials among the cabal of Russiagate hoaxers who sought to discredit the New York Post's damning Hunter Biden laptop story ahead of the 2020 election are now begging Congress to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

The former officials' history of misleading the American people has prompted critics to doubt the value of their latest recommendation.

On Monday, 46 former intelligence officials signed a letter to the House speaker, majority leader, and minority leader, pleading for them to renew Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Additionally, they denounced Arizona Republican Rep. Andy Biggs' Protect Liberty and End Warrantless Surveillance Act, which would reform Section 702 and require a warrant for all U.S. person searches.

Section 702 of FISA enables the government to spy on non-Americans without first obtaining a warrant. The FBI admitted earlier this year to using Section 702 to target American citizens roughly 278,000 times in 2021 alone. This law was also exploited by the FBI to spy on members of the Trump campaign in 2016 without probable cause.

Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) indicated in a Blaze News piece this week that "backdoor searches under FISA 702 are carried out without any of the safeguards created to protect life, liberty, and property from the kind of harm that an unrestrained government is uniquely capable of inflicting."

Among the signatories of the Dec. 11 letter calling for the renewal of Section 702 through the National Defense Authorization Act were:

  • James Clapper, former director of national intelligence under Obama;
  • Glenn S. Gerstell, former general counsel for the National Security Agency;
  • Richard H. Ledgett Jr., former deputy director of the NSA;
  • Jeremy Bash, the former chief of staff both of the CIA and the Department of Defense; and
  • Michael Morell, former acting director of the CIA.

These individuals also happened to sign the Oct. 19, 2020, letter entitled, "Public Statement on the Hunter Biden Emails."

Their 2020 letter asserted that the Hunter Biden laptop story and the evidence it discussed were likely all an utter fabrication — that the story had "all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation."

While willing to admit in the letter to not knowing whether the Hunter Biden emails provided to the New York Post were "genuine" and having no "evidence of Russian involvement," Clapper and his cosignatories suggested a "laptop op" designed "to discredit Biden ... would be consistent with some of the key methods Russia has used in its now multi-year operation to interfere in our democracy."

Then-candidate Joe Biden used the misleading letter to great effect, referencing it in the final presidential debate with former President Donald Trump on Oct. 22, 2020.

Contrary to the expert opinion of the intelligence partisans, the Hunter Biden laptop and its contents — allegedly verified by the FBI as early as 2019 — were ultimately recognized by the Washington Post, New York Times, and other mainstream outfits as real and as the property of the first son. However, this inadvertent acknowledgment that the former intelligence officials were hacks did not occur until well after Biden secured the White House.

While five of the Russiagate hoaxers, evidently unashamed of their last epistolary collaboration, certainly signed the pro-FISA imploration to Congress, there may be greater overlap among the signatories, as the infamous "intel" letter was also supported by nine unnamed former intelligence community officers.

Their Dec. 11 letter asserts that "Section 702 saves American lives and helps keep Americans safe from international terrorist attacks, foreign cyberattacks, overseas fentanyl suppliers, and other threats to our national security."

The letter denounces Biggs' proposed reforms to Section 702, suggesting they would "prohibit queries that have kept our nation safe"; "undermine cybersecurity efforts"; and grant "unprecedented rights to foreigners."

The Protect Liberty and End Warrantless Surveillance Act, introduced on Dec. 4, has strong bipartisan support.

"Substantial reforms to FISA are long overdue, and we commend Chairman Biggs for his steadfast commitment to reining in unchecked surveillance of Americans," said House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio).

Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler (N.Y.) said, "No government agency or surveillance program is free to evade the requirements of the Fourth Amendment, and Section 702 as it currently exists does just that. This sweeping, bipartisan package of reforms aims to bring these programs back in line with our values and also keep Americans safe from those who seek to do us harm."

"This legislation prohibits the government from purchasing Americans' data from big tech companies without a search warrant and adds needed warrant requirements to Section 702 of FISA. Our Constitution is not for sale and the right to privacy must be protected," said Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio).

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Biden DHS touts Russiagate hoaxers as members of new intelligence 'experts group'



Peddling false narratives that benefit President Joe Biden appears to be a smart career move in the nation's capital.

Congressional investigators indicated in May that ahead of the 2020 presidential election, a senior Biden campaign adviser got the ball rolling on the bogus "intel" letter that sought to discredit the New York Post's damning Hunter Biden laptop story. That adviser, Antony Blinken, ended up becoming secretary of state.

On Wednesday, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced that several ex-Obama officials, including signatories of the notorious "intel" letter and exponents of the debunked Russian collusion narrative, would be joining the DHS' new Homeland Intelligence Experts Group.

In a statement, the DHS indicated the group, which will meet four times a year, "is comprised of private sector experts who will provide their unique perspectives on the federal government's intelligence enterprise to DHS's [Intelligence and Analysis] and the Office of the Counterterrorism Coordinator."

"The security of the American people depends on our capacity to collect, generate, and disseminate actionable intelligence to our federal, state, local, territorial, tribal, campus, and private sector partners," said Mayorakas, who has failed to prevent over 5.8 million illegal aliens from stealing into the U.S. since Biden took office.

"I express my deep gratitude to these distinguished individuals for dedicating their exceptional expertise, experience, and vision to our critical mission," added Mayorkas.

Among the group's 17 members, three signed the Oct. 19, 2020, letter claiming that "the arrival on the US political scene of emails purportedly belonging to Vice President Biden's son Hunter ... has all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation."

Those signatories are John Brennan, former director of the CIA and chief counterterrorism adviser to former President Barack Obama; James Clapper, former director of National Intelligence under Obama; and Paul Kolbe, former senior operations officer at the CIA.

Then-candidate Joe Biden used the letter to great effect, referencing it in the final presidential debate with former President Donald Trump on Oct. 22, 2020, saying, "Look, there are 50 former national intelligence folks who said that what he’s accusing me of is a Russian plan. They have said that this has all the characteristics — four, five former heads of the CIA, both parties, say what he’s saying is a bunch of garbage. Nobody believes it except him and his good friend Rudy Giuliani."

FEC records reportedly indicated that Clapper and Kolbe also donated to Biden's 2020 campaign.

Brennan and Clapper worked particularly hard for years to paint former President Donald Trump as a Russian asset and his administration as compromised by Russia — corrosive claims that the Mueller and Durham reports demonstrated to have been false.

For instance, Clapper, who became a fixture on CNN as a national security analyst, told the liberal network in December 2017 that Russian President Vladimir Putin "knows how to handle an asset, and that's what he's doing with" Trump.

Brennan was a particularly vociferous proponent of the Russia hoax, even though he admitted behind closed doors to know better.

He penned an Aug. 16, 2018, New York Times opinion piece, stressing, "Mr. Trump’s claims of no collusion are, in a word, hogwash. The only questions that remain are whether the collusion that took place constituted criminally liable conspiracy, whether obstruction of justice occurred to cover up any collusion or conspiracy, and how many members of 'Trump Incorporated' attempted to defraud the government by laundering and concealing the movement of money into their pockets."

Even when confronted with the prospect that he had been wrong for years, in August 2020, Brennan nevertheless interpreted the Mueller report to show "collusion between the Trump Campaign & the Russians."

Special counsel John Durham later revealed Brennan's public statements concerning the Russia hoax conflicted with testimony he gave on the matter as part of the investigation, reported Just the News.

Other members of the DHS' so-called expert group include:

  • Rajesh De, who served as White House staff secretary and general counsel of the U.S. National Security Agency in the Obama administration;
  • Tashina Gauhar, a former Department of Justice attorney who was reportedly deeply involved in the applications to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court that were used to spy on the Trump campaign and has been accused of sitting on failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's emails with Andrew McCabe;
  • David Kris, nominated by Obama for assistant attorney general in charge of the DOJ's National Security Division — a post he held from 2009 to 2011; and
  • Francis Taylor, another Obama nominee who served as under secretary of homeland security for Intelligence and Analysis at the DHS from 2014 to 2017.

Under Secretary for Intelligence and Analysis Ken Wainstein claimed, "The Experts Group will be an invaluable asset as we navigate through this evolving threat and operating environment and continue to strengthen our efforts to protect the Homeland."

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House committee: Blinken got the ball rolling on Hunter Biden 'intel' letter; Biden campaign weighed in on press strategy



The House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government has revealed some damning insights into how the Biden campaign coordinated the manufacture and dissemination of the notorious Hunter Biden "intel" letter that impacted the 2020 election.

It appears as though then-senior Biden campaign adviser and now-Secretary of State Antony Blinken got the ball rolling on the bogus letter that sought to discredit the New York Post. Additionally, it is clear the Biden campaign handpicked liberal outlets to parade their handiwork in, just ahead of a critical presidential debate.

Blinken kicks off Biden disinformation campaign

The New York Post published an explosive story on Oct. 14, 2020, about the laptop Hunter Biden abandoned at a Delaware computer shop and an email thereon concerning then-Vice President Joe Biden's shady connections with Burisma, a holding company for a group of Ukrainian energy companies.
A few days later, Blinken, working for the Biden campaign, contacted former acting CIA Director Mike Morell to discuss the Post's reporting, intimating it might be Russian disinformation.

Just as Blinken was destined for a big position in Biden's administration in the event that the Hunter Biden story was rendered toothless, Morell was reportedly under consideration to be appointed Biden's CIA director.

In the ensuing exchange between Blinken and Morell, it was clear — from a signature at the base of one of the emails — that there were other Biden campaigners possibly involved.
Blinken forwarded to Morell a USA Today article titled, "A tabloid got a trove of data on Hunter Biden from Rudy Giuliani. Now, the FBI is probing a possible disinformation campaign." At the bottom of Blinken's email was the signature block of Andrew Bates, then-director of rapid response for the Biden campaign.
Bates, noted the Weaponization committee, was at the time tasked with defending Biden "against attacks on the campaign trail, while also employing an aggressive offensive strategy against President Trump and his team."

Morell testified that after and as a result of this exchange with Biden's future secretary of state, he began drafting the letter with the aim to get it out before the Oct. 22 presidential debate, in which Biden used the statement to great effect.

Bad intelligence

The committee indicated that Morell testified that he did not speak to anyone about potential Russian involvement with the laptop, but "rather researched the issue himself following his conversation with [then-Biden campaign adviser Antony] Blinken."

In an Oct. 18, 2020, email requesting signatures, Morell wrote that he had drafted the letter "because we believe the Russians were involved in some way in the Hunter Biden email issue and because we think Trump will attack Biden on the issue at this week's debate and we want to give the VP a talking point to use in response."

The signing campaign was a success.
James Clapper, former director of national intelligence; Leon Panetta, former head of the CIA; John Brennan, former head of the CIA; Michael Hayden, former head of the National Security Agency; Nick Rasmussen, former director of the National Counterterrorism Center; Mike Vickers, former under secretary of defense for intelligence; and dozens of others signed the letter entitled, "Public Statement on the Hunter Biden Emails."

The letter Morell drafted declared that the Hunter Biden laptop story and the evidence it discussed were likely all an utter fabrication — that the story had "all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation."

Despite admitting in the letter to not knowing whether the Hunter Biden emails provided to the New York Post were "genuine" and having no "evidence of Russian involvement," Clapper and his peers suggested a "laptop op" designed "to discredit Biden ... would be consistent with some of the key methods Russia has used in its now multi-year operation to interfere in our democracy."

The author of the now-discredited letter added, "Our experience makes us deeply suspicious that the Russian government played a significant role in this case. If we are right, this is Russia trying to influence how Americans vote in this election, and we believe strongly that Americans need to be aware of this."

Biden campaign puppets media response

After getting a slew of signatories whom he reportedly "misled" — allegedly with the help of a CIA insider — Morell had Nick Shapiro, his former deputy chief of staff and senior adviser at the CIA, "coordinate dissemination efforts with the media."

Morell told Shapiro what to say on and off the record with reporters.

"On the record from you: What is this? A large group of former career intelligence officers, many specializing in Russia, joined by a group of former IC leaders, all saying that the Russians were somehow involved here," Morell told Shapiro. "The IC leaders who have signed here are diverse in that they worked for the past four Presidents, including Trump. The real power here is the number of former, working-level IC officers who want the American people to know."

Morell further instructed Shapiro to volunteer the following details off the record: "Make sure sure reporters know that we are not making a call on whether the materials are true or not, just that Moscow played a role in getting the information out."

Unearthed emails show that Morell stressed that the Biden campaign preferred that the Washington Post first run the story.

According to the committee, "Morell apprised Shapiro that, '[b]etween us, the campaign would like' a specific reporter with the Washington Post to run the statement first."

\u201cBut it doesn\u2019t stop there! \n\nThe Biden Campaign coordinated the dissemination of the statement to other members of the media as well. \n\n@washingtonpost, @AP, @politico\u201d
— Weaponization Committee (@Weaponization Committee) 1683714333

After packaging the intended narrative in email form for the media to disseminate, Shapiro ran the content by the Biden campaign, ostensibly for its approval.

Despite its preference that the "Democracy dies in darkness" crew at the Washington Post advance the narrative, the Biden campaign also saw fit to have the letter passed to the Associated Press with its preferred framing.

When neither liberal outlet ran the story right away, Natasha Bertrand at Politico did so dutifully, with an Oct. 19, 2020, piece entitled, "Hunter Biden story is Russian disinfo, dozens of former intel officials say."

While parroting the suggestions made in the letter, Bertrand also advanced claims by Biden's top advisers in the piece, including their rebukes of credible accusations concerning the Bidens' business dealings in Ukraine and elsewhere.

Bertrand appears to have been rewarded with a CNN gig not long thereafter.

\u201cHow much coordination was happening between the signers of the Hunter Biden \u201cintel\u201d letter and the Biden Campaign? \n\nSo much, that the Biden Campaign signaled which news outlet they\u2019d like to break the story first. \n\nThe outlet? @washingtonpost.\u201d
— Weaponization Committee (@Weaponization Committee) 1683713787


Payoff

Then-candidate Joe Biden exploited both the Politico report and the letter, referencing them in the final presidential debate with former President Donald Trump, saying, "Look, there are 50 former national intelligence folks who said that what he’s accusing me of is a Russian plan. They have said that this has all the characteristics — four, five former heads of the CIA, both parties, say what he’s saying is a bunch of garbage. Nobody believes it except him and his good friend Rudy Giuliani."

The Blinken-triggered letter came in handy on at least one other occasion.

Biden cited the discredited letter on "60 Minutes," where he said, "From what I’ve read and know, the intelligence community warned the president that Giuliani was being fed disinformation from the Russians. And we also know that Putin is trying very hard to spread disinformation about Joe Biden. And so when you put the combination of Russia, Giuliani, and the president together, you assess what it is. It’s a smear campaign because he has nothing he wants to talk about in his — what is he running on? What is he running on?"

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