8 Ways Government Shielded Joe Biden From The ‘Laptop From Hell’

Margot ClevelandApril 28, 2023

n about Hunter Biden’s business dealings in Ukraine and China. Yet, the FBI sat on the laptop for months, only seizing it in December 2019, after the impeachment of President Trump had concluded.

Even then, the FBI didn’t immediately investigate the contents of the laptop. Instead, they made it off-limits to other law enforcement agencies, including the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, which had requested access to the laptop as part of their investigation into the Biden family’s foreign business dealings.

3. Media Blackout

Despite the explosive nature of the laptop’s contents, the mainstream media largely ignored the story, with many outlets dismissing it as “Russian disinformation” without any evidence to support that claim. This media blackout effectively shielded Joe Biden from any negative fallout from the scandal during the 2020 election.

It wasn’t until after the election that the story gained traction, with outlets like the New York Post and Fox News reporting on the laptop’s contents and the efforts to bury the story. By then, however, it was too late to impact the election.

Conclusion

The Hunter Biden laptop scandal represents a clear case of election interference by our own government. By seizing the laptop, making it off-limits to other law enforcement agencies, and working with the media to bury the story, the government effectively shielded Joe Biden from any negative fallout from the scandal during the 2020 election.

It’s time for the American people to demand answers about the government’s involvement in this scandal and hold those responsible accountable for their actions. Our democracy depends on it.

The Hunter Biden laptop scandal is a prime example of government interference in the 2020 presidential election. The FBI’s handling of the laptop raises serious questions about their motives and actions. Here are four ways the government assisted Joe Biden’s campaign:

FBI Seized Laptop to Protect Joe Biden

According to whistleblowers, the FBI waited two months before obtaining a subpoena for Hunter Biden’s laptop. Upon seizing the laptop, the local FBI leadership allegedly told employees not to look at it. The FBI did not examine the contents of the laptop until after the 2020 presidential election, potentially a year after obtaining it. These facts strongly suggest that the FBI seized the laptop to protect then-candidate Joe Biden by keeping its contents secret.

FBI Presumably Gave Inaccurate Briefing

If the FBI did not review the laptop until after the 2020 presidential election, then the government’s pre-election defensive briefings for Biden would have been inaccurate. It is even possible that intelligence agencies falsely told Biden that the laptop or the Post’s reporting on it was Russian disinformation. The FBI’s alleged failure to review the laptop until after the election would have prevented the government from advising Biden about Hunter’s video telling a prostitute in 2018 that he believed a group of Russians had stolen another laptop from him. By failing to give Biden complete and accurate defensive briefings, the government gave the campaign “plausible deniability.”

Government Sources Lied to Media

FBI officials intervened publicly after the New York Post broke its first story on Oct. 14, 2020. The next day, NBC’s Ken Dilanian reported that “federal investigators are examining whether emails allegedly describing activities by Joe Biden and his son Hunter and found on a laptop at a Delaware repair shop are linked to a foreign intelligence operation.” USA Today similarly reported the FBI’s supposed involvement in investigating whether a Russian influence operation was behind the disclosure of the Hunter Biden emails. On Oct. 17, 2020, USA Today reiterated that the “federal authorities” are investigating whether the laptop is “disinformation pushed by Russia.” Leaking to help a political campaign is bad enough, but worse is that while unnamed government sources told select outlets the laptop was Russian disinformation, they knew it was not.

Media Censored the Story

The mainstream media censored the Hunter Biden laptop story, refusing to cover it or dismissing it as Russian disinformation. Twitter and Facebook even censored the New York Post’s reporting on the laptop, preventing users from sharing the story. The media’s censorship of the story helped Joe Biden’s campaign by preventing the public from learning about the laptop’s scandalous details.

The Hunter Biden Laptop Scandal: How the Government and Media Tried to Cover it Up

The Hunter Biden laptop scandal was one of the biggest stories of the 2020 election cycle. It revealed corruption and shady dealings by the Biden family, including Hunter’s lucrative position on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma while his father was vice president. But instead of investigating the story, the government and media worked to cover it up.

1. FBI Investigation and Disinformation Campaign

While the FBI was investigating the laptop as a potential “disinformation campaign,” the agency was actually doing no such thing. In fact, it already knew the laptop was real and not hacked. This false narrative helped to discredit the laptop and protect the Bidens.

2. Other Leaks Pushed ‘Russia Disinfo’ Narrative

The government also helped the Biden campaign build the false Russian-disinformation narrative with other leaks. The New York Times reported that U.S. intelligence analysts “had picked up Russian chatter that stolen Burisma emails” would be released as an “October surprise.” This spin prepared the public to disregard the laptop, or to assume the more damaging documents were “forged.” The Washington Post pushed similar leaks, with the outlet reporting that “U.S. intelligence agencies warned the White House last year that President Trump’s personal lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani was the target of an influence operation by Russian intelligence.” These leaks helped bolster the Biden campaign’s claim the laptop was Russian disinformation since Giuliani had provided the hard drive to the Post.

3. Government Pressed Social Media to Censor

In addition to leaking false claims to the media, the government interfered in the 2020 election by priming Big Tech companies to censor the laptop story. Facebook’s founder, Mark Zuckerberg, revealed that the FBI had warned the company to be on high alert for a potential dump of Russian propaganda. This interference helped to suppress the story and protect the Bidens.

4. The Cover-Up Continues

The government and media’s efforts to cover up the Hunter Biden laptop scandal continue to this day. The mainstream media has largely ignored the story, and Big Tech companies continue to censor any discussion of it. But the truth cannot be suppressed forever. The American people deserve to know the full extent of the corruption and shady dealings of the Biden family.

er’s involvement raise questions about potential government interference in social media censorship. It’s alarming to think that the FBI may have been manipulating Twitter behind the scenes, especially given the agency’s history of abusing its power. And with former FBI officials like Baker now working for tech companies, it’s not hard to imagine more instances of government overreach in the future.

6. The Need for Transparency and Accountability

Given the FBI’s apparent role in censoring the Hunter Biden laptop story, it’s clear that we need more transparency and accountability from both the government and big tech companies. The public deserves to know the extent of the FBI’s involvement in the censorship, and whether other instances of government interference have occurred.

Furthermore, social media companies must be held accountable for their actions. It’s unacceptable for them to act as gatekeepers of information, especially when they have a clear bias. The fact that Twitter and Facebook were so quick to censor the laptop story, while allowing other dubious stories to spread unchecked, is deeply troubling.

We need to demand more transparency and accountability from both the government and big tech companies. The free flow of information is essential to a functioning democracy, and we cannot allow powerful institutions to silence voices they disagree with.

Government Interference in the 2020 Election: The Laptop Scandal

Recent revelations have shed light on potential government interference in the 2020 election, specifically regarding the laptop scandal involving Hunter Biden. The FBI’s communication with the Office of General Counsel raises questions about their involvement in feeding Twitter fake intel to sway public opinion. Additionally, the 51 former intelligence officials who declared the laptop story as foreign disinformation may have been prompted by the Biden campaign, but it is unclear if any current government officials assisted in their efforts.

The Military Connection

The latest “Twitter Files” released by Andrew Lowenthal reveal a potential connection between the military and the laptop info ops. An email referencing the “2020 U.S. Elections Tabletop Exercise” was sent to individuals connected to Harvard Law School and Harvard’s Intellectual Property in Cyberspace program, as well as individuals with military email accounts. The email was CCed to organizations that participated in the Aspen Institute’s “Tabletop Exercise,” which prophetically used a “hack-and-leak” “October Surprise” involving Hunter Biden to game the media’s response. The timing of the email is striking, dated the day after the 51 former intelligence officials released their statement framing the laptop as Russian disinformation.

What Role Did the Military Play?

It remains to be seen what role, if any, the military had in pushing the hoax. However, it is clear that our government helped peddle the Democrats’ info ops on the American public. The potential for government interference in the 2020 election is alarming and raises serious concerns about the integrity of our democratic process.

Margot Cleveland is The Federalist’s senior legal correspondent. She is also a contributor to National Review Online, the Washington Examiner, Aleteia, and Townhall.com, and has been published in the Wall Street Journal and USA Today. Cleveland is a lawyer and a graduate of the Notre Dame Law School, where she earned the Hoynes Prize—the law school’s highest honor. She later served for nearly 25 years as a permanent law clerk for a federal appellate judge on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Cleveland is a former full-time university faculty member and now teaches as an adjunct from time to time. As a stay-at-home homeschooling mom of a young son with cystic fibrosis, Cleveland frequently writes on cultural issues related to parenting and special-needs children. Cleveland is on Twitter at @ProfMJCleveland. The views expressed here are those of Cleveland in her private capacity.

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