Obama Spy Chief Accuses POLITICO Of Distorting Letter On Hunter Biden Laptop

James Clapper, former Director of National Intelligence, accused POLITICO “deliberately” Falsely describing a letter that he and 50 intelligence veterans signed in regards to the Hunter Biden laptop story.

Clapper, who served as the nation’s spy chief during the Obama administration, said the letter did not assert that reporting on the laptop was part of a Russian disinformation operation, a notion that POLITICO peddled with its headline when first reporting the existence of the letter.

“There was message distortion,” Clapper told The Washington Post’s Fact Checker. “All we were doing was raising a yellow flag that this could be Russian disinformation. Politico deliberately distorted what we said. It was clear in paragraph five.”

The Note from 51 former intelligence officers came out in the days leading up to the 2020 presidential election, warning that reporting about the laptop’s alleged contents “has all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.”

While the signees stated that they were unsure if the emails being sent at the time were authentic and insisted they had no evidence to support Russian involvement, POLITICO, who first reported the letter, went beyond what it said. Publication of a headline That was how the ex-intelligence officials claimed the story was. “Russian disinfo.”

Then-candidate Joe Biden, Hunter’s father, used the letter to The laptop story is a mystery During one of his debates against then-President Donald Trump. “There are 50 former national intelligence folks who said that what he’s accusing me of is a Russian plan,” Biden During the debate.

The Washington Post reported that Clapper was contacted by the Washington Post after Clapper and 11 others signed a letter from Jim Jordan, Chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Requests for documents or testimony regarding the letter — a development first reported by The Daily Wire.

“No one who has spent time in Washington should be surprised that journalists and politicians willfully or unintentionally misconstrue oral or written statements,” Thomas Fingar, a former State Department official, was another signer of this letter and was contacted directly by The Washington Post. “The statement we signed was carefully written to minimize the likelihood that what was said would be misconstrued, and to provide a clear written record that could be used to identify and disprove distortions.”

Other tidbits of information were also provided in the new report. Clapper claimed that he did not know how Biden described it during the presidential debate. The Washington Post also reported its Fact Checker discovering that Michael Morell (former CIA Deputy director) organized the letter.

The laptop, which allegedly was abandoned at a Delaware computer repair shop before the FBI obtained it, contains details about Hunter Biden’s personal life and financial affairs. John Paul Isaac (the repairman who got the laptop), sued POLITICO as well as others for defamation. They were accused of falsifying their assertions He disinformation spread by Russia. The Daily Beast, one the new outlets listed in the lawsuit later, was also named. Issued an apology Reporting that the laptop was stolen “stolen.”

POLITICO supported its reporting on the letter.

“The article fairly and accurately reported on — and summarized — the intelligence officials’ letter,” According to the statement. “More specifically, the headline is a fair summary of their allegations, the subhead offers additional context, and the first paragraph of the article hyperlinks to the letter itself, allowing readers to draw their own conclusion.”

Many of the contents of the laptop story, which began more than two years ago has been republished. Analysed and proven authentic. Hunter Biden’s lawyers recently began to send letters to state and federal officials Individuals should be investigated involved in the sharing of the contents of his laptop. They made it to the media. Abbe Lowell, the attorney for his client, insists that the letters remain confidential. do not “confirm” the laptop was his client’s device.

Douglas Wise is a former deputy director of Defense Intelligence Agency. Information revealed last month He and the other signees concluded that the contents were genuine at the time of the letter’s publication. “All of us figured that a significant portion of that content had to be real to make any Russian disinformation credible,” He The Australian.

Federal prosecutors are currently investigating Hunter Biden, including his foreign business dealings. The existence of the long-running investigation was not disclosed. Posted to the public Until after 2020. Hunter Biden said that he expects to be Cleared of any wrongdoing.