{"id":2284694,"date":"2024-06-27T14:41:02","date_gmt":"2024-06-27T18:41:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/former-intel-officials-who-signed-laptop-letter-remain-defiant\/"},"modified":"2024-06-27T14:44:32","modified_gmt":"2024-06-27T18:44:32","slug":"former-intel-officials-who-signed-laptop-letter-remain-defiant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/former-intel-officials-who-signed-laptop-letter-remain-defiant\/","title":{"rendered":"Former Intel Officials Who Signed Laptop Letter Remain Defiant"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fformer-intel-officials-who-signed-laptop-letter-remain-defiant%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2284694&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses the ongoing \u200ccontroversy around a\u200d letter signed by 51 former intelligence officials in \u200d2020, declaring the Hunter Biden laptop story as potential Russian disinformation, intended to influence the 2020 U.S. \u2064<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/im-kind-of-a-jerk-carlson-mocks-implosion-of-2-gop-hopefuls-during-interview-with-beck\/\" title=\"Carlson ridicules downfall of 2 GOP candidates in chat with Beck\">presidential \u200belection<\/a>. Despite subsequent\u2064 developments and additional information coming to light, many of these officials, including former National Intelligence \u200dDirector \u200dJames Clapper and former CIA Directors \u200bJohn \u2064Brennan and Michael Morell, expressed no regrets regarding their \u2062decision to sign the letter.<\/p>\n<p>The Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee \u2062released transcripts from interviews \u200bwith these officials where they shared their perspectives. Clapper, for\u2063 instance, \u200bfirmly stood by\u200c his\u2063 initial stance even when questioned about\u2063 his current\u2063 views in light security of new information. Brennan mentioned his regret was more about the political controversy the letter spurred rather than its contents.<\/p>\n<p>The release of\u200b the \u2064transcripts was part of a broader investigation by the\u2063 House Judiciary\u2019s Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the \u200bFederal Government, which also revealed that some of the signatories, including\u2063 Morell and former Inspector General David Buckley, were on\u2062 the CIA payroll when the letter was published, \u200craising questions about conflicts\u2063 of interest.<\/p>\n<p>The report also\u2064 implicated connections to political figures,\u2063 with claims \u200bthat Antony Blinken, then\u200c a senior advisor \u200dto Biden&#8217;s campaign and later Secretary of State, triggered the drafting\u200b of the letter. The \u200ccontroversy continued to \u2064stir political and public debate, emphasizing deep-rooted issues of trust and partisanship within the U.S. \u2062intelligence and political communities.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Prominent former intelligence officials who sought to discredit the Hunter Biden laptop story as Russian disinformation four years ago remain defiant about their willingness to abuse their security status to engage in election interference.<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday, Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/JudiciaryGOP\/status\/1806326027007697396\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">released<\/a> the transcripts of interviews with several of the 51 officials who signed the infamous 2020 letter to Politico writing the laptop had \u201call the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.\u201d Among those interviewed include former National Intelligence Director James Clapper, former CIA Director John Brennan, former Acting CIA Director Michael Morell, former National Counterterrorism Center Director Nick Rasmussen, and former CIA official Nick Shapiro, all of whom expressed no regrets about signing the letter. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t have regrets about signing the statement, given what was known at the time,\u201d Rasmussen told lawmakers. \u201cI regret that the statement has been drawn into a political controversy and regret that that is so.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>John Brennan, who ran the CIA throughout President Barack Obama\u2019s second term, said he only regretted that the infamous letter had \u201cgiven fuel to those who want to create this furor over it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat the press of what individuals might have done to leverage it for their own purposes or leadership or whatever, that\u2019s up to them,\u201d Brennan told lawmakers in May last year. \u201cI did this as a private citizen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Former Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, who <a href=\"https:\/\/rollcall.com\/2023\/09\/15\/leaving-congress-rep-chris-stewart-looks-back-on-first-government-shutdown\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">resigned<\/a> in September after his wife suffered a stroke, had pressed former National Intelligence Director James Clapper about any regrets related to the letter \u201cwith all the information available to you now.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou still don\u2019t regret it?\u201d Stewart asked in May last year. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d Clapper said.<\/p>\n<p>Except the letter from the more than 50 former officials also contradicted <a href=\"https:\/\/thefdrlst.wpengine.com\/2020\/10\/19\/intelligence-director-john-ratcliffe-debunks-russian-disinformation-theories-on-hunter-biden-emails\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">statements <\/a>undermining claims of Russian interference from the incumbent director of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fncs-carlson-if-youre-looking-for-election-rigging-look-no-further-than-media-treatment-of-hunter-biden-saga\/\" title=\"FNC's Carlson: 'If You're Looking for Election Rigging, Look No Further' Than Media Treatment of Hunter Biden Saga\">national intelligence<\/a> at the time. The laptop would later be officially entered into evidence to <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/06\/12\/hunter-biden-trial-is-a-conviction-of-every-deep-state-lie-about-hunters-laptop\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">convict <\/a>Hunter Biden.<\/p>\n<p>House Republicans followed the transcript release Thursday with a video featuring then-candidate Joe Biden using the letter to escape credible accusations of corruption at the final presidential debate of 2020. The video also included footage of the Judiciary Committee\u2019s interview with Morell testifying that a phone call from Antony Blinken, Biden\u2019s secretary of state who was a senior advisor to the campaign, \u201ctriggered\u201d the public letter to Politico. <\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><span><\/p>\n<blockquote data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<div lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<p>October 22, 2020. <\/p>\n<p>First presidential debate. <\/p>\n<p>President Biden promotes the letter written by 51 former intel officials decrying Hunter Biden&#8217;s laptop. <\/p>\n<p>Turns out, it was all a coordinated hit against President Trump. <\/p>\n<p>WATCH FOR YOURSELF \u2935\ufe0f <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/JbJtm7Gahg\">pic.twitter.com\/JbJtm7Gahg<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u2014 House Judiciary GOP \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@JudiciaryGOP) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JudiciaryGOP\/status\/1806364578202202237?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 27, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><\/span> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThere were two intents,\u201d Morell said of the letter. \u201cOne intent was to share our concern with the American people that the Russians were playing on this issue; and, two, it was to help Vice President Biden.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The transcribed interviews were released after the Judiciary\u2019s Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/06\/26\/ex-husband-of-cnn-debate-moderator-dana-bash-signed-biden-laptop-letter-in-2020\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">revealed<\/a> Tuesday that several of the letter\u2019s signatories were being paid by the CIA. According to House investigators, both Morell and former Inspector General David Buckley were both on agency payroll at the time the letter was published. Buckley was also a <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/03\/24\/top-j6-staffer-signed-letter-defaming-hunter-biden-laptop-as-russian-disinformation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lead investigator<\/a> on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi\u2019s Select Committee on Jan. 6.<\/p>\n<p>Jeremy Bash, who was previously married to CNN\u2019s Thursday-night debate moderator, Dana Bash, was also a signatory named in the House report Tuesday as an \u201cindependent contractor\u201d at the time of the letter. <\/p>\n<p>Morell denied the accusations of working for the CIA while signing the letter with a statement to the New York Post. \u201cIf you write that, you would [be] wrong,\u201d Morell said. But a House source delivered the CIA document showing Morell\u2019s agency involvement to The Federalist on Tuesday evening.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe evidence in our report speaks for itself and it seems that the spy who lied is continuing to do so,\u201d Russell Dye, a spokesman for the House Judiciary Committee, told The Federalist.<\/p>\n<p>RealClear Investigative Reporter Paul Sperry <a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearinvestigations.com\/articles\/2024\/06\/26\/james_clapper_mr_october_surprise_how_obamas_intel_czar_rigged_2016_and_2020_debates_against_trump_1040444.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">chronicled<\/a> Clapper\u2019s efforts to weaponize the deep state against Republicans in the past two presidential elections Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn Oct. 7, 2016 \u2013 just two days before the presidential debate between Trump and Clinton \u2013 Clapper issued the unprecedented intelligence advisory with Obama\u2019s personal blessing,\u201d Sperry reported. \u201cIt seemed to lend credence to what the Clinton camp was telling the media \u2014 that Trump was working with Russian President Vladimir Putin through a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/oliver-l-north-and-david-l-goetsch-durham-probe-what-did-hillary-know-and-when-did-she-know-it\/\" title=\"Oliver L. North and David L. Goetsch: Durham Probe \u2013 What Did Hillary Know and When Did She Know It?\">secret back channel<\/a> to steal the election.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Russia collusion hoax would go on to undermine the first half of Trump\u2019s presidency and ultimately lay the groundwork for the former intelligence officials to claim four years later that the Hunter Biden laptop was an instrument of Kremlin interference.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn hindsight, Clapper\u2019s well-timed pseudo-intelligence in 2016 and 2020 helped Clinton and Biden make the case against Trump as a potentially Kremlin-compromised figure, charges that crippled his presidency and later arguably denied him reelection,\u201d Sperry wrote, adding post-election surveys revealed nearly half of Democrat voters in swing states were oblivious to Biden\u2019s own scandals. \u201cIn effect, Joe Biden was elected president because millions of voters were steered away by Clapper and his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/desperate-to-save-his-family-one-former-u-s-combat-interpreter-makes-dire-return-to-a-fallen-afghanistan\/\" title=\"Desperate To Save His Family, One Former U.S. Combat Interpreter Makes Dire Return To A Fallen Afghanistan\">intelligence colleagues<\/a> from learning about the damning contents on Hunter Biden\u2019s laptop.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Tristan Justice is the western correspondent for The Federalist and the author of Social Justice Redux, a conservative newsletter on culture, health, and wellness. He has also written for The Washington Examiner and The Daily Signal. His work has also been featured in Real Clear Politics and Fox News. Tristan graduated from George Washington University where he majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow him on Twitter at @JusticeTristan or contact him at Tristan@thefederalist.com. Sign up for Tristan&#8217;s email newsletter <a href=\"https:\/\/socialjusticeredux.substack.com\/about\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Four years ago, prominent ex-intelligence officials who labeled the Hunter Biden laptop story as Russian disinformation remain unapologetic about misusing their security status for potential election interference. Recently, the House Judiciary Committee Republicans disclosed interview transcripts with some of the 51 signatories<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":494,"featured_media":2284695,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/46329842375_8177679e2c_k-e1719510952860.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[3692,33064,33065],"class_list":["post-2284694","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-former","tag-intel-officials","tag-laptop-letter"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/46329842375_8177679e2c_k-e1719510952860.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2284694","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/494"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2284694"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2284694\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2284695"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2284694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2284694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2284694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}