James Clapper accuses Politico of 'deliberately' distorting letter on Biden laptop being Russian disinfo
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper accused Politico of having "deliberately distorted" an infamous letter signed by him and other intelligence officials about Hunter Biden's laptop being potential Russian disinformation.
Then-Politico reporter Natasha Bertrand obtained the letter for a story headlined, "Hunter Biden story is Russian disinfo, dozens of former intel officials say," mere weeks before the 2020 election.
"There was message distortion," Clapper told The Washington Post's Glenn Kessler in an article published 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."
Clapper was one of 50 intelligence officials that signed the letter, which was written in October 2020, shortly after the New York Post first reported on the contents of Hunter Biden's laptop. Clapper, along with at least a dozen other signees on the letter, endorsed Joe Biden for president that year.
Bertrand, who was criticized by the Washington Post's Erik Wemple for her "boosterism" of the discredited Christopher Steele dossier, now works at CNN.
Another signer, former deputy director of National Intelligence for analysis Thomas Fingar, told the Post that no one should be "surprised" by members of the media or politicians that "willfully or unintentionally" misconstrue statements.
"No one who has spent time in Washington should be surprised that journalists and politicians willfully or unintentionally misconstrue oral or written statements," Fingar wrote in an email. "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."
Kessler's fact-check dinged Biden for declaring at a debate with Trump that the former intelligence officials had concluded the laptop was a "Russian plan," accusing Biden of exaggerating.
Politico did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. The outlet told Kessler, "The article fairly and accurately reported on — and summarized — the intelligence officials' letter. 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."
"The intent of the letter was that this could be Russian disinformation — emphasis on could. It's a very important nuance … a distinction that people are always ignoring," Clapper also told the Washington Post.
The Post also noted another signer, former Defense Intelligence Agency deputy director Douglas Wise, who told The Australian that signers believed the laptop was at least somewhat legitimate in order "to make any Russian disinformation credible."
Fingar agreed and said the best disinformation campaigns are based on factual information.
"From my experience, the most effective disinformation campaigns — what were called Soviet 'active measures' when I first encountered them during the Reagan administration — build on factual information," Fingar said.
"Pure fiction is less likely to fool target audiences. I suspect but do not know that other signers have drawn the same lesson," he continued.
Several Twitter executives testified before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee about Twitter's decision to suppress the Hunter Biden laptop story on the social media site before the election.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., claimed the story was "half-fake" during the hearing and criticized the hearing in general.
"We could be talking about the cost of prescription drugs, abortion rights, civil rights, voting rights, but instead we're talking about Hunter Biden's half fake laptop story. I mean, this is an embarrassment, but I'll go into it," she said.
Tags
Who is online
61 visitors
One of the deep blue state's top guns was in the hot seat trying to explain why he thought (in writing) that the Hunter laptop looked like "Russian dissinformantion." Clapper who has famously lied to congress in the past pointed out that he and all the other Trump hating intell officials used the word "could!"
It was all Politico's fault!
Then he walked out of the hearing unscathed and his testimony destined for page 4 news.
You keep referring to a deep state and now a deep blue state, which does not exist.
So... It "could" be Russian disinformation?
No. The FBI had the laptop in it's possession from the beginning. They know it's real.
So... Even though 50 intelligence officials put their careers on the line by signing a document stating that it "could be Russian disinformation" it absolutely is not because Vic Eldred says so?
Most of them were retired.
Why would they say the Hunter Laptop could be "Russian dissinformation?"
I don't know. Maybe because it could.
Biden's SOTU speech COULD have been written by Putin.
See how stupid that kind of shit sounds?
The article said: "All we were doing was raising a yellow flag that this could be Russian disinformation." Am I supposed to ignore that part and treat the rest like it's gospel? If part of it is a lie then I'll treat it all as a lie.
Did they say that the Steele Dossier could have been a Russian plant?
Look, all the excuses in the world doesn't cover their asses on this.
They should never have signed that dumb letter.
Gar-an-fucking-tee they would never have had the story been about one of the Trump kids.
Just partisan hacks.
Covering for Biden.
You read the same article that I did. Sound out the words.
Not sure you read it based on your posts.
Nothing you have written here gives any credence to your claim.
Crazy how he never used his airtime on CNN to push back at Politico when this story was raging isn't it?
Two and half years later he comes forward and start pushing back Politico's characterization of the letter. I guess it "could" be that he just learned of the reporting now.
"Could" is a hilariously weak-ass argument and not believed by most sane adults.
Clapper's trying to cover his ass.
I haven't claimed anything. I've simply pointed out a small portion of the article that was posted by Vic. Sorry if I've made anybody uncomfortable.
That is because all of the media cover has been removed from the Hunter hard drives.
The 50 were shown to be full of shit. The media has to crucify someone; and it sure as hell isn't going to be themselves.
Must really suck to have their name signed on that paper. Their credibility isn't worth shit now. Surprised that Clapper still has a job.
As is Clapper ... but hey, if FOX has a conniption why not follow suit.
oh, sorry, looked like you claimed you read the article
Well think about it...There was an election going on.
Facebook and Twitter banned a newstory that would have hurt Joe Biden.
In the debate when Trump brought it up, Biden referred to the 52 former Inteel officers claim, only Biden claimed that they actually did call it Russian Dissinformation.
The idea has always been to toss shit in the direction of Trump in every election in the hopes that some of it sticking.
And Btw, let us never forget:
"The director of National Intelligence apologized in June to the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee for lying during a hearing, according to a letter published on the DNI website on Tuesday.
Director James Clapper appeared before the committee in March, where Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., asked him specifically if NSA spies on millions of Americans. Clapper answered, "No."
And yet here we are reading stories about them. If, as has been stated here, the FBI has had this laptop since the beginning how does anybody know what's on it?
The owner of the abandoned laptop made four copies of the hard drive.
All it ever takes is one planting the seed. People will run with their interpretation. If anything, it is Tapper and his fellow signers that planted the "disinformation" seed.
It COULD have been, but wasn't, and people at the FBI knew that because they had Hunter's laptop!
These former "intelligence" (I use that word very loosely in their description) officials are disingenuous and rather stupid to display their partisanship so blatantly, thus losing all credibility.
And so are their partisan apologists.
Other than covering for Biden, there was NO reason for former intelligence folks to comment on something in the possession of the FBI.
The convenient 'could'. Yes, James Clapper, the Hunter laptop story could be Russian disinformation. But the story also could be the tip of an iceberg. Clapper used the propagandist's ploy of focusing attention on only one 'could'. That's how Russian disinformation works, too.
In both cases, the American people are the target of the disinformation. Clapper didn't lie with his 'could'. But that 'could' also means that Clapper didn't know what was true. Clapper made a choice from ignorance and used his authority to give weight to that choice. That's how politics and propaganda works.
Of course, he waited 2 and a half years to correct the record, like any honest person would.
Clapper is an idiot who got caught and is merely trying to cover his tracks.
Anyone falling for this shit must be blind and stupid as hell.
Why on earth would former intelligence officials comment on something having ZERO to do with them?
I mean, other than giving Biden cover?
"There was message distortion," Clapper told The Washington Post's Glenn Kessler in an article published 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."
So all these experts said it walked like a duck and talked like a duck but it may not be a duck and they expected the media and citizens to not buy into it being a duck because they put a disclaimer on it? They took advantage of a media they knew would do exactly what they did and a population that is too stupid to ask a question or care about its validity.