The saga of Hunter Biden's laptop returns to the news, nearly four years after 51 intelligence officials signed onto a letter dismissing the very legitimate concerns as Russian disinformation. On Tuesday, the House Intelligence Committee, the House Judiciary Committee, and the House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government released a report detailing how CIA contractors colluded with the Biden campaign over the laptop to "MISLEAD AMERICAN VOTERS."
The House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday afternoon posted a thread of takeaways of evidence, which can also be found in the report and the report's executive summary, as well as statements from the chairmen of the relevant committees.
The executive report begins by mentioning just how much of a role seeking to discredit the laptop played in the 2020 election:
The Committee on the Judiciary, its Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence have revealed how, in the final weeks before the 2020 presidential election, 51 former intelligence officials coordinated with the Biden campaign to discredit serious allegations about Biden family influence peddling. In issuing a public statement using their official titles, these former intelligence officials sought to cast an explosive New York Post story and Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop as “Russian disinformation.” President Biden even cited to the statement in a televised debate with President Trump shortly before the election to accuse President Trump of leveling false accusations. As a result, the explosive allegations about Biden family misconduct were buried and millions of Americans cast their votes for president without a full set of facts.
The 51 former intelligence officials’ Hunter Biden statement was a blatant political operation from the start. It originated with a call from top Biden campaign official—and now Secretary of State—Antony Blinken to former Deputy Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director Michael Morell. The Committees’ investigation revealed that without this outreach from Blinken, Morell would not have written the statement. Indeed, Morell told the Committees that the Blinken phone call “triggered” his intent to write the statement. The statement’s drafters were open about the goal of the project: “[W]e think Trump will attack Biden on the issue at this week’s debate”6and “we want to give the [Vice President] a talking point to use in response.”
When it comes to the evidence laid out in the report, it's clear that it was those at the top were aware of the issue. It's not just now Secretary of State Antony Blinken who played such an important role. For instance, then-CIA Director Gina Haspel was made aware of the statement on Hunter Biden prior to its approval and publication. "Senior CIA leadership had an 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 executive summary points out.
Those formerly involved with the CIA in leadership roles had an even more of an active part in suppressing the laptop story. Mike Morell, one of the signatories, wasn't just formerly the deputy director, he was also "on active contract with the CIA at the time of the Hunter Biden statement's publication," the executive summary also mentions. Another name included former CIA Inspector General David Buckley. This is despite how the report also mentions that "Throughout the course of the Committees’ investigation, the signatories claimed to not have had access to any classified information when asserting that the allegations surrounding Hunter Biden’s laptop had 'all the hallmarks' of Russian disinformation."
The role of such actors such as Morell and Buckley looks to have led to strife within the CIA as well, considering that after the statement was published, "CIA employees internally expressed concern about the statement’s politicized content, acknowledging it was not 'helpful to the Agency in the long run.'"
There were concerns for instance that Senior Intelligence Service Officer Marc Polymeropoulos, who co-wrote and submitted talking points was involved with the Biden campaign. As one CIA official is quoted in the report as saying, "It appears [Polymeropoulos] is actively involved in a pro-Biden campaign and may be disclosing classified information in his efforts." Sure enough, the report also notes that the "CIA’s internal review board, known as the Prepublication Classification Review Board (PCRB), determined that Polymeropoulos’s talking points contained classified information that had to be removed prior to publication."
NEW ON THE HUNTER BIDEN LAPTOP LETTER:
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) June 25, 2024
-The highest officials at the CIA were aware of the statement prior to its publication.
-Some of the signatories were on ACTIVE CONTRACT with the CIA at the time they issued it.
-Officials at the CIA knew the statement was political. https://t.co/TRQn0nfyr6
🚨 MAJOR BREAKING NEWS: New Information Shows CIA Contractors Colluded with the Biden Campaign to Discredit Hunter Biden Laptop Story
— House Judiciary GOP 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@JudiciaryGOP) June 25, 2024
Read our latest report: https://t.co/nzZTNWwvUo pic.twitter.com/NPC2vhApZZ
The highest officials within the CIA were aware of the statement prior to its publication. CIA’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) Andrew Makridis testified that he informed Director Gina Haspel or Deputy Director Vaughn Frederick Bishop about its impending release. This sequence of…
— House Judiciary GOP 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@JudiciaryGOP) June 25, 2024
Speaking of that "long run," the report's conclusion also lays out what such a role the CIA played with such collusions means for today and the future, as well as what the Committees plan to do about it [Emphasis added]:
The signatories’ choice to leverage the authority of their former intelligence community titles to peddle a narrative about foreign election interference inappropriately embroiled the Agency in the domestic political process. The poor judgment displayed by the signatories and the CIA’s executive suite—those who could have prevented the Agency from being entangled in a false and domestically politicized narrative of Russian interference—is as relevant today as it was four years ago. To date, there are no clear or transparent rules to prevent intelligence contractors from leveraging their access to the CIA for political purposes.
Seasoned CIA officials like Morell and Polymeropoulos were able to subvert the process to spread disinformation in the weeks leading up to the 2020 presidential election because the CIA lacked meaningful safeguards to prevent this from happening. Unless and until the CIA makes substantial reforms to its own oversight processes surrounding public statements and contractor behavior, these problems could persist.
Without rigorous oversight of the intelligence community—and without proper safeguards to prevent the weaponization of privileged access within the intelligence community—rogue actors like Morell and Polymeropoulos are likely to continue engaging in political work under the guise of responsible action. As a result, the Committees will continue oversight to prevent individuals from using the authority of the federal government for their own partisan desires.
In a statement, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), who chairs the House Judiciary and the Weaponization Subcommittee, reminded what we knew about the laptop, and also highlighted the role of the CIA. "We knew that the rushed statement from the 51 former intelligence officials was a political maneuver between the Biden campaign and the intelligence community. Now with this interim report, we reveal how officials at the highest levels of the CIA were aware of the statement and CIA employees knew that several of the so-called former officials were on active contract with the CIA. The report underscores the risks posed by a weaponized federal government," he said.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner (R-OH) chimed in to explain more about the report.
"The House Intelligence Committee's work provided us with solid direct evidence that in the final weeks before the 2020 presidential election, 51 former intelligence officials coordinated with the Biden campaign to falsely cast doubt on an explosive New York Post story and label…
— House Judiciary GOP 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@JudiciaryGOP) June 25, 2024
Other reactions have also come in, including from House Republican leadership. In a statement from Wednesday morning, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) reminded how such a report confirms what we've known about President Joe Biden and his family for years, and offered continued oversight from the House.
"This damning report from House Republicans confirms what the American people have known for years," she said. "Joe Biden and his campaign colluded with the 51 disgraced former intelligence officials and weaponized the highest levels of the CIA, including signatories of the statement that were actively in a contractual relationship with the CIA, to cover up the Hunter Biden laptop story. House Republicans will continue to expose this blatant weaponization of the federal government and hold both Joe Biden and his administration accountable through our constitutionally mandated role of oversight."
— Rep. Elise Stefanik (@RepStefanik) June 26, 2024
House Committees aren't the only ones looking into CIA collusion. On Wednesday morning Judicial Watch revealed that, thanks to a FOIA request, they received documents showing Morrell actually received rushed approval of the letter he and 50 others signed onto looking to discredit the Hunter laptop story.
"This is a rush job, as it needs to get out as soon as possible," Morrell claimed in an email where Polymeropoulos was copied. His request was approved in just six hours by the CIA.
"These documents are astounding. That the CIA would turn around a campaign document like this for Joe Biden’s team in six hours is insane news," Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said. "This seems to be demonstrable campaign interference by the CIA, and that should be alarming to all Americans."
Morrell’s request for prepublication review was approved in just six hours by the CIA (2/3). https://t.co/6Q9ALmcXEK
— Judicial Watch ⚖️ (@JudicialWatch) June 26, 2024
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