Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper is claiming that Politico distorted “what we said” more than two years ago when he signed an open letter asserting that the New York Post’s reporting on Hunter Biden’s laptop was part of a “Russian information operation.”
Clapper is engaging in historical revisionism and is trying to justify the letter he signed with more than 50 other intelligence bigwigs. That letter is now part of an investigation by the Republican-led House Judiciary and Intelligence committees. It was first reported by Politico and then touted by Joe Biden.
“There was message distortion,” Clapper told The Washington Post in an interview on Monday. “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.”
He is making his comments almost 11 months after The Washington Post authenticated almost 22,000 emails from the laptop and reportedly came to the conclusion that Hunter Biden and his uncle, James Biden, were paid $4.8 million by a Chinese energy company and its executives. It also follows the FBI being exposed by the “Twitter Files” over the agency’s alleged involvement in suppressing the laptop story.
Are you kidding me? He is saying the press distorted his claim the laptop was Russian disinformation. What a spineless human being! pic.twitter.com/ezfhM4N0uz
— TallTanOne (@TallTanOne) February 14, 2023
The pre-election lie — and that's what it was — that the NY Post's reporting was based on "Russian disinformation" was first disseminated by @Politico and @NatashaBertrand, who was rewarded for her lying by being hired by CNN.
James Clapper now says they *deliberately* lied👇 pic.twitter.com/FUxcvelCP5
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) February 13, 2023
“To me, this is just classic textbook Soviet Russian tradecraft at work,” Clapper stated at the time. “The Russians have analyzed the target, they understand that the president and his enablers crave dirt on Vice President Biden. Whether it’s real or contrived, that doesn’t matter to them, and so all of a sudden, two-and-a-half weeks before the election, this laptop appears somehow, and emails on it without any metadata. It’s all very curious.”
Politico broke the story on the letter that was signed by Clapper, five ex-CIA chiefs, and others. It stated that the release of Hunter Biden’s emails “has all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.”
“Hunter Biden story is Russian disinfo, dozens of former intel officials say,” Politico’s explosive headline read.
When Biden was running for the presidency, he promoted the unfounded allegation during his final debate with former President Trump. He called the New York Post’s reporting on the laptop and emails a “Russian plan” and “a bunch of garbage.”
I don’t care who is bored by it: 2 weeks before Americans went to vote for President, the CIA and others in the intelligence community concocted an outright lie that most major media corporations spread.
Everyone now knows it’s a lie, but not one media outlet has retracted it. pic.twitter.com/y4aIeaVLPB
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) February 13, 2023
Very good point: if James Clapper knew Politico and Natasha Bertrand were lying about what their letter said, why didn’t he say so then?
Reality: the CIA/IC people lying wanted the media to spread this. Only now that someone has to take the hit is Clapper saying Politico lied. pic.twitter.com/BXbkGqanNt
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) February 13, 2023
The letter has resulted in the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees demanding interviews with Clapper and 11 other signatories. That includes acting CIA Director Michael Morell, who organized the open letter according to the Washington Post.
Thomas Fingar, a former top State Department intelligence official, is also on that list. He excoriated Politico, laying blame on the media outlet for his actions as well.
“No one who has spent time in Washington should be surprised that journalists and politicians willfully or unintentionally misconstrue oral or written statements,” Fingar told 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,” he added.
The CIA and other intelligence operative scumbags have a point here, one I’ve stressed from the start.
In their letter to manipulate the election, they said they didn’t *know* it was Russian disinformation, just thought it was.
It was the media that transformed it into fact. pic.twitter.com/5ebvezvGoD
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) February 13, 2023
After James Clapper, as Obama’s DNI, got caught red-handed lying to the Senate about NSA domestic spying, CNN hired him.
Clapper is accusing CNN’s @NatashaBertrand of having *deliberately* lied about his letter.
These media outlets have to confront what they did. pic.twitter.com/scJaVUzIzM
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) February 13, 2023
If the intel leaders refuse to appear in front of the committees, it is likely that subpoenas will be issued according to a GOP congressional source who spoke with the New York Post.
Politico issued a statement to the Washington Post standing by its story.
“The article fairly and accurately reported on — and summarized — the intelligence officials’ letter,” the statement said. “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.”
Anyone who thinks James Clapper is really coming clean about covering up the Hunter Biden laptop doesn’t know him at all.
— Rep. Darrell Issa (@repdarrellissa) February 14, 2023
New York Post columnist Miranda Devine told Fox News Digital in an interview that Clapper’s comments “show what a fraud he is, and that he’s worried now the GOP controls the House and has vowed to haul in the signatories and make them testify under oath. He’s trying to pre-shape the narrative.”
“They were silent. That was the message they wished to convey, and now they are scrambling because the GOP House is about to hold them accountable,” Devine pointed out.
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