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☆ White House Calls on Republicans to End Biden Impeachment Inquiry
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Peter Baker | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The White House insisted on Friday that House Republicans end their effort to impeach President Biden, declaring that “enough is enough” after their monthslong inquiry failed to turn up promised evidence of high crimes and misdemeanors. “It is obviously time to move on, Mr. Speaker,” Edward N. Siskel, the White House counsel, wrote in a four-page letter to Speaker Mike Johnson. “This impeachment is over. A number of Republicans have cast doubt on the venture, and even some champions of impeachment have now concluded that they could not muster a majority if they sent articles to the floor charging Mr. Biden. The White House hopes to capitalize on Republicans’ disarray, in effect calling their bluff and daring them to put up or shut up, although the hard-liners in the G.O.P.

Persons: Biden, ” Edward N, Siskel, Mike Johnson, “, Hunter Biden Organizations: Republicans, Republican

☆ House GOP Biden inquiry stalls as impeachment becomes less likely
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Annie Grayer | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

Hunter Biden arrives at the Thomas P. O'Neil Jr. House Office Building for a closed door deposition on February 28, in Washington, DC. Abbe Lowell makes a statement to the press following a closed-door deposition before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, and House Judiciary Committee in the O'Neill House Office Building on February 28, in Washington, DC. “He was well-prepared for the kind of questions,” Issa recounted of Hunter Biden. GOP focus shifts away from impeachment probeInvestigating the Biden family and going after President Biden was a top priority for House Republicans when they reclaimed the majority and got control of committees. GOP Rep. Ryan Zinke of Montana said the three Republican chairmen leading the impeachment inquiry have the same message: “They say we’re not in a position to go forward on impeachment.”

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, Hunter Biden, James Comer, Jim Jordan, Comer, Donald Trump, Thomas P, O'Neil Jr, Countess, Merrick, Justice won’t, ” Comer, Mike Johnson, “, Jordan, Johnson, “ I’m, ” Johnson, Ralph Norman of, Troy Nehls, impeaching Biden, We’ve, Let’s, ”, ” Nehls, Alejandro Mayorkas, I’m, Trump, weaponized, ” Jordan, Vernon, Ed Siskel, ” Siskel, Hunter, Mary, ” Hunter, Abbe Lowell, Samuel Corum, Hunter Biden’s, Darrell Issa, ” Issa, Robert Hur, Garret Graves, Chip Roy, Texas, Lisa McClain, Richard Hudson of, it’s, Nick LaLota, ” Norman, Ryan Zinke Organizations: House Republicans, Department of Justice, CNN, Fox News, Merrick Garland’s Department, Justice, Louisiana Republican, ” Staff, GOP, Caucus, Democratic, Homeland, Senate, Trump, White, Getty, Committee, Republican, of, Hunter Biden, Republicans, Internal Revenue Service, Judiciary, House, House Republican, “ Locations: Washington ,, Merrick Garland’s, Louisiana, House, Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Texas, Georgia, Miami, Vernon Hill, Florida, O'Neill, Washington , DC, California, Lisa McClain of Michigan, Richard Hudson of North Carolina, New York, Montana

☆ Opinion: What Hunter Biden and Donald Trump have in common
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Opinion Andrey Spektor | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Hunter Biden won’t be returning to the spotlight next week as the House Oversight Committee had hoped. The problem with the Hunter Biden investigation, though, is not its potential reliance on the word of a compromised informant. And in that sense, Hunter Biden shares something in common with an unlikely person: Trump, at least with respect to his criminal case in New York. Much like the gun charge against Hunter Biden, the tax indictment has left many former federal white-collar prosecutors like me scratching their heads. That doesn’t mean that Trump or Hunter Biden are innocent; indeed, the former has more serious cases to contend with.

Persons: Andrey Spektor, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, CNN — Hunter Biden won’t, James Comer’s, Joe Biden, Andrey Spektor Bryan Cave Leighton, Hunter, Alexander Smirnov, Biden, you’ve, Smirnov, Hunter Biden, –, Donald Trump –, that’s, Trump, Hunter Biden’s Organizations: CNN, Republicans, Biden, Republican, Department of Justice Tax, IRS, DOJ’s Locations: New York

☆ Hunter Biden declines to attend public hearing on House impeachment inquiry
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, makes a statement to the press outside the U.S. Capitol about testifying publicly to the House Oversight and Accountability Committee on Wednesday, December 13, 2023. Hunter Biden on Wednesday declined an invitation to testify in public next week as part of House Republicans' impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. Hunter Biden sat for a closed-door deposition with the GOP investigators on Feb. 28. Comer on March 6 had invited Hunter Biden to testify again on March 20, this time in a public hearing titled, "Influence Peddling: Examining Joe Biden's Abuse of Public Office." That invitation came weeks after federal authorities arrested and charged Alexander Smirnov, a former FBI informant, with lying to the government about Joe and Hunter Biden.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, Abbe Lowell, James Comer, Lowell, Mary, Comer, Joe Biden's, Alexander Smirnov Organizations: U.S, Capitol, Republicans, Democratic, GOP, Public Office, FBI Locations: Ky

☆ Hunter Biden Refuses to Testify Publicly, Calling G.O.P. Inquiry a ‘Circus’
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Luke Broadwater | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Hunter Biden, the president’s son, on Wednesday rejected a request from House Republicans to testify next week at a public hearing in their impeachment inquiry into President Biden, blasting the G.O.P.’s plans as a “made-for-right-wing-media circus act.”House Republicans had asked the younger Mr. Biden to appear at a hearing on March 20 alongside three of his former business partners. Two of them have been convicted in fraud cases, and the other is angry over being cut out of a deal. But Abbe Lowell, Mr. Biden’s lawyer, cited a scheduling conflict while slamming the proceeding in a letter to Representative James R. Comer, Republican of Kentucky, the chairman of the Oversight Committee. “Your blatant planned-for-media event is not a proper proceeding but an obvious attempt to throw a Hail Mary pass after the game has ended,” Mr. Lowell wrote, adding: “Mr. Biden declines your invitation to this carnival side show.”

Persons: Hunter Biden, Biden, Abbe Lowell, Biden’s, James R, Comer, Mary, ” Mr, Lowell, Mr, ” Organizations: Republicans, ”, Republican Locations: Kentucky

After a yearlong investigation, Hur concluded that Biden mishandled classified material and improperly disclosed classified information as a private citizen. Here are four key things to look for in Tuesday’s high-stakes hearing:What will Hur say about Biden’s age and memory? (At 81, Biden is the oldest US president in history, though Donald Trump is only a few years younger at 77.) House Republicans are looking for Hur’s public testimony to provide fresh momentum to their sputtering impeachment inquiry into Biden. Hur’s approach will determine how easy, or hard, it is for lawmakers to extract the political moments that they want.

Persons: Robert Hur, Joe Biden’s, Hur, Biden, wouldn’t, Donald Trump, Beau, Barack Obama, seething Biden, “, ” Biden, ”, Jack Smith, Trump, ” Hur, Will Hur, Hunter, Steve Ruark, Mr, Biden’s, Hunter Biden, Robert Mueller, John Durham, Bill Barr, – Hur, he’ll, Biden’s feebleness Organizations: CNN, GOP, Justice Department, Republicans, National Archives, Department of Justice, Court, Ukrainian, Justice, Internal Revenue Service, White, Trump, Democratic, Capitol Locations: Washington, Tuesday’s, Israel, Florida, Ukrainian, Baltimore, Maryland, Russia

☆ Justice Dept. pushes back on Hunter Biden’s efforts to dismiss charges, mirroring fights between Trump and prosecutors
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( Holmes Lybrand | Hannah Rabinowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Special counsel David Weiss ridiculed efforts by Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, to dismiss tax charges against him as legally baseless and steeped in a “conspiracy theory,” in court filings Friday. The arguments between Weiss and Hunter Biden’s attorneys mirror arguments put forth by Donald Trump in his own special counsel cases. Their similarities underscore how cases brought by a special counsel – no matter who the defendant is – are often fought through similar, and sometimes political, playbooks. Like Trump, Hunter Biden has argued the special counsel overseeing his criminal cases was unlawfully appointed. Both Weiss and Smith pushed back in the same way, arguing that Garland has the authority to appoint whoever he wants as special counsel.

Persons: David Weiss, Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, Hunter Biden’s, Weiss, Hunter, Donald Trump, –, Trump, Merrick Garland, Jack Smith, Garland, Smith, ” Weiss, “, ” Organizations: CNN, Trump, Justice Department Locations: California, Delaware

☆ US House Panel Invites Hunter Biden to Testify on March 20, Statement Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( March | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives Oversight Committee has invited President Joe Biden's son Hunter to testify on March 20 as part of the panel's impeachment investigation of the president, the panel said in a statement on Wednesday. Republican investigators have focused on Hunter Biden's work for businesses in Ukraine and China while his father served as U.S. vice president from 2009 to 2017. So far they have turned up no evidence of wrongdoing by the elder Biden, even as they have highlighted his son's struggles with substance abuse.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Hunter, Biden Organizations: WASHINGTON, U.S . House, Republican Locations: Ukraine, China

☆ Google can recover from the Gemini flop. Just look at Apple Maps.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Peter Kafka | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Google's Gemini flop looks bad from the outside. Ask the folks who worked on Apple Maps. Apple Maps fiasco could point the way forwardBut let's be more positive this time around, with a different echo from the Big Tech Screwups file: Remember Apple Maps? And then, over time, Apple did get its act together, and people did start using Apple Maps, and now there are plenty of normal people who use Apple Maps as a default, and some of them even argue that it's better than Google Maps. Except: The time between Apple Maps' flop and that article I linked to above — headline: "People Have Begun to Love Apple's Most Hated Product" — was more than a decade.

Persons: —, Alex Kantrowitz, wokeness, OpenAI, Hunter, Tim Cook, Cook, Apple's, Gemini Organizations: Google, Big Tech, Apple, Service, Gemini, Microsoft

☆ This tense showdown between Hunter Biden and Matt Gaetz over drug use is quite something
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz and Hunter Biden crossed swords over drug use during a deposition. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. AdvertisementA new transcript shows the tense moment Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida decided to go after Hunter Biden with probing questions about drugs — and what happened next. Gaetz asked, referencing the Ukrainian energy company that Hunter Biden had served as a board member for. "I will answer it this way: I have been absolutely transparent about my drug use," Hunter told Gaetz on Wednesday.

Persons: Matt Gaetz, Hunter Biden, Gaetz, Hunter, he'd, —, Biden, Joe Biden, Oklahoma Sen, Markwayne Mullin, Mullin, CNN's Manu Raju, Mullin's, Hunter hasn't Organizations: Service, GOP, CNN, Gaetz, Business Insider Locations: Florida, Ukrainian, Oklahoma

☆ Six Takeaways From Hunter Biden’s Testimony
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Luke Broadwater | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After years of pursuing Hunter Biden, the president’s son, Republicans finally got their chance to question him during a more than six-hour interview on Wednesday, as they hunted for evidence to try to impeach his father. Republicans quickly released a 229-page transcript of the interview, which depicts Hunter Biden as eager to confront G.O.P. lawmakers over their accusations that he and his father had committed wrongdoing through his international business deals. Despite pending criminal charges against him, Mr. Biden, 54, never invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. Throughout the interview, Mr. Biden maintained that his father had never been involved in his business deals, and insisted that blame for his misdeeds should not fall on the elder Mr. Biden.

Persons: Hunter Biden, G.O.P, Biden, —

☆ Google's Gemini flop raises the question: What exactly do we want our chatbots to do, really?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Peter Kafka | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Internet culture chronicler Max Read has a particularly sharp assessment about all of it: Yes, this is dumb. are all that interesting or enlightening questions compared to something like "well, what did you want the computer to do?" I can't really even come up with situation where Gemini's refusal to say that Hitler is worse than Elon Musk has some terrible downstream effect. And, also — The Gemini debacle really is a debacle. AdvertisementMaybe we can all take a breath and slow down, and figure out what this tech really can, and can't do.

Persons: Elon Musk, Hunter, Ted Cruz, Max Read, Pol Pot, Martha Stewart, Hitler, they've, chatbots, Marc Andreessen Organizations: Big Tech, Google, Twitter Locations: New York

U.S. President Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden talks to reporters outside the U.S. Capitol on December 13, 2023 in Washington, DC. Hunter Biden will appear a week after James Biden, the president's brother, told lawmakers that at no point during his 50-year business career was Joe Biden involved in his work. Joe Biden attended dinners, spoke on speakerphone, showed up to meetings, and had coffee with his son's foreign business associates. Republicans first issued a subpoena to Hunter Biden in early November, but through his lawyer, he chose not to comply with it for months. Hunter Biden will repeat what he and other witnesses have previously told the committees, that his father was not involved in his business, the sources said.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Hunter Biden, WASHINGTON — Hunter Biden, James Biden, Joe Biden, Hunter, James Comer, Comer, Biden, MAGA, Alexander Smirnov, Smirnov Organizations: U.S, Capitol, WASHINGTON, GOP, Committee, NBC, Republicans, MAGA Republicans, White House, Democratic, NBC News, FBI, Russian, Republican Locations: Washington , DC, Ky

☆ After Asking ‘Where’s Hunter?’ for Years, Republicans Will Question Biden’s Son
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Luke Broadwater | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Hunter Biden, the president’s son, is scheduled to appear on Capitol Hill on Wednesday for a deposition conducted by House Republicans who are hunting for evidence to try to impeach his father. The interview of Hunter Biden, 54, which is expected to be lengthy, comes at a make-or-break moment for the inquiry. informant accused of making up a story that the elder Mr. Biden took a $5 million bribe. After years of asking “Where’s Hunter?” and spreading the lurid contents of a laptop that contained graphic material of his exploits while he struggled with drug addiction, Republicans will finally have their chance to question him. It will be a major moment in the drawn-out feud between Republicans and Mr. Biden about whether he would cooperate in the impeachment inquiry.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Biden, “ Where’s Hunter Organizations: House Republicans, Republicans

☆ What to watch for out of Hunter Biden’s closed-door depositions with Republicans on Capitol Hill
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Jeremy Herb | Annie Grayer | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Hunter Biden has been the focus of Republicans in Congress since they won the majority over a year ago. Regardless, Hunter Biden’s appearance is expected to create a spectacle on Capitol Hill, even as he will be testifying behind closed doors. Not surprisingly, the committees are expecting more lawmakers to show up for Hunter Biden than typical for depositions. “You are the epitome of White privilege,” GOP Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina told Hunter Biden from the dais. The stand-off led to contempt proceedings against Hunter Biden, after he showed up on Capitol Hill the day the committees scheduled his deposition.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Joe Biden’s, Joe Biden, –, Biden, There’s, Hunter, ’, Hunter Biden won’t, James Comer, that’s, Hunter Biden’s, Alexander Smirnov, Donald Trump’s, White, Nancy Mace, weren’t, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Greene, Where’s Hunter, ” Hunter Biden Organizations: Congress, Republican, FBI, Republicans, GOP, CNN, Justice Department, Capitol, South Carolina Locations: Ukrainian, Georgia

Hunter Biden’s appearance Wednesday represents the most significant testimony to date for the two congressional committees leading the impeachment inquiry into President Biden, a probe that’s heavily focused on Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings. But it comes as a key allegation that launched the impeachment inquiry has been discredited. Sources familiar with terms negotiated between Hunter Biden’s team and congressional Republicans told CNN that Wednesday’s deposition will have several unique features that are different from the other interviews the committees have conducted to date. While Hunter Biden’s lawyers insisted that he would only testify publicly, Comer insisted that a public hearing would follow the private deposition. Republicans repeatedly pointed to Smirnov’s allegations as a reason for opening the impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden last fall.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Joe Biden’s, –, Hunter, Biden, Hunter Biden’s, James Comer’s, Comer, Joe Biden, Department’s, Alexander Smirnov, Jim Jordan, Jordan, Burisma, wouldn’t, Abbe Lowell, Lowell Organizations: Capitol, CNN, FBI, Republicans, GOP, Justice Department Locations: Washington

☆ Ex-F.B.I. Informant to Be Held in Custody Indefinitely, Judge Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Lauren Herstik | Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

informant charged with falsely claiming that President Biden and his son Hunter had accepted bribes, will be held in custody indefinitely because he poses a significant flight risk, a judge in California ruled on Monday. After a 45-minute hearing, a bespectacled Mr. Smirnov — stocky, bearded with close-cropped salt-and-pepper hair and wearing tan and orange prison togs — pleaded not guilty in heavily accented English, turning around briefly to wave at his longtime girlfriend seated in the gallery. Prosecutors working for David C. Weiss, the special counsel investigating Hunter Biden, offered new details about the circumstances of Mr. Smirnov’s rearrest last week in the office of his lawyer. They grew alarmed after a search of the $980,000 condo where he has lived for the past two years revealed nine handguns, they said. (Prosecutors said that Mr. Smirnov had paid for the apartment but that it was in his girlfriend’s name.)

Persons: Alexander Smirnov, Biden, Hunter, Smirnov, —, Otis D, Wright, David C, Weiss, Hunter Biden, Smirnov’s rearrest Organizations: Federal, Court, Prosecutors Locations: California, Las Vegas, Russia

☆ Exclusive: Russia-linked smear campaign against Hunter Biden began earlier than previously thought
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Mattathias Schwartz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

The man pushing the thumb drive was a citizen of an Eastern European country and a guest of Claremont. That evening, Rollie passed a thumb drive containing disinformation about Hunter Biden and Burisma to a Pompeo aide. Smirnov was indicted last week for lying to the FBI about Hunter Biden. The revelation about Rollie's thumb drive comes shortly after the indictment of Smirnov, for allegedly making false statements about Hunter Biden in June 2020. Like Smirnov, Rollie's materials accuse Hunter Biden of involving his father in Burisma's business and committing a vast off-the-books fraud.

Persons: Mike Pompeo, Hunter Biden, Rollie, Pompeo, Burisma, BI Rollie, I'm, Rollie's, Biden's, Josef, Johnathan Buma, Donald Trump, Joe Biden's, Peter Schweizer, Rudy Giuliani, John Solomon, Hunter, Giuliani, Alexander Smirnov, Smirnov, Biden, David Weiss, Smirnov's, Joe Biden, GOP Sen, Charles Grassley, MAGA, Jack Posobiec, Buma, Anastasiia Carrier Organizations: Claremont Institute's, Claremont, Business, BI, KGB, Department, Claremont Institute, FBI, New York Times, Prosecutors, GOP, State Department, Justice Department, Anastasiia Locations: Russia, Ukrainian, Beverly Hills, Eastern, Soviet, Los Angeles, Russian, Delaware, Ukraine, The Hill, East, West, Eastern Europe

☆ Republicans to grill James Biden behind closed doors in critical interview as GOP looks for lifeline in impeachment probe
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Annie Grayer | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Hunter Biden is expected to show for his closed-door interview next week, after intense deliberations that almost collapsed. The first check Republicans revealed went to Joe Biden in 2018 for $200,000 from James Biden and James’ wife Sara Biden. What other Biden family business associates have saidBeyond Fox and Langston, Republicans have recently interviewed a number of key Biden family business associates. Walker also attended a 2017 business meeting with Hunter Biden and Chinese business associates, where Joe Biden made an appearance. Another longtime Biden family business associate, Eric Schwerin, performed administrative and bookkeeping tasks for then-Vice President Joe Biden from 2009 to 2017.

Persons: Joe Biden, Hunter, James, Wednesday, Biden, Hunter Biden, Mike Johnson, —, David Weiss, Hunter Biden’s, Alexander Smirnov, Robert Hur’s, Biden’s, James Biden, James ’, Sara Biden, ”, James Comer, Comer, Carol Fox, ‘ Biden, ’, Fox, James Biden’s, Joseph Langston, Langston, “, “ Jimmy Biden, ” Langston, Rob Walker, Walker, Biden —, ” Walker, ‘, ’ ”, Eric Schwerin, ” Schwerin, Mervyn Yan, Kevin Morris, Tony Bobulinski, Georges Bergès, White, Bergès, ” Bergès Organizations: Republicans, GOP, CNN, FBI, Burisma Holdings, undercutting, White, Democratic, Banking, Republican, Biden, Kentucky Republican, Fox, Langston, “, White House Locations: South Korea, Washington ,, China, Kentucky, Americore, Romania, American

☆ Special counsel asks judge to send indicted ex-informant in Hunter Biden case back to jail
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Hannah Rabinowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Special counsel David Weiss asked a California judge Wednesday to send indicted ex-FBI informant Alexander Smirnov back to jail while he awaits trial. A magistrate judge in Las Vegas released Smirnov on Tuesday, finding that even enough Smirnov posed a flight risk, he could be released under certain conditions. Those conditions include GPS monitoring, confiscating his two passports, and ordering him to remain in Nevada where he currently lives. Smirnov is charged with lying to the FBI about the Biden family’s dealings in Ukraine. In the court filings, Weiss said that Smirnov repeatedly lied to his FBI handler, whom he worked with for more than a decade, and should not be trusted.

Persons: David Weiss, Alexander Smirnov, Smirnov, Prosecutors, Weiss, ” Organizations: CNN, FBI, Las Vegas, Biden Locations: California, Las, Nevada, Ukraine, Russia

☆ Indicted ex-FBI informant admitted Russian intelligence officials passed along the Hunter Biden bribery story, prosecutors say
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Smirnov said Russian intelligence passed along the story of the bribery claims, per a court filing. The memo also indicates that Smirnov met with Russian intelligence officials as recently as December of 2023. What this shows is that the misinformation he is spreading is not confined to 2020," the prosecutor's memo in favor of detention reads. "He is actively peddling new lies that could impact US elections after meeting with Russian intelligence officials in November. Impact of Smirnov's indictmentSmirnov's indictment and arrest may have an impact on unrelated gun charges facing Hunter Biden.

Persons: Biden, Alexander Smirnov, Smirnov, —, Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, Obama, General, Harry Reid, David Weiss, Smirnov's, Weiss Organizations: Burisma Holdings, Service, ex, FBI, GOP, White, Business, Ukrainian, Biden, Burisma, Public, Harry, Harry Reid International, Government, Central District of, CNN, Lawyers Locations: Ukrainian, Las Vegas, Central District, Central District of California, United States

☆ Alexander Smirnov told investigators he got Hunter Biden dirt from Russian intelligence officials
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Hannah Rabinowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The former FBI informant charged with lying about the Bidens’ dealings in Ukraine told investigators after his arrest that Russian intelligence officials were involved in passing information to him about Hunter Biden, prosecutors said Tuesday in a new court filing, noting that the information was false. They said he previously told the FBI that he has longstanding and extensive contacts with Russian spies, including individuals he said were high-level intelligence officers or command Russian assassins abroad. The story, prosecutors noted, matches the story Smirnov told his handler about Hunter Biden being recorded in a foreign hotel. And, prosecutors wrote, Smirnov claims to have met with Russian intelligence officials as recently as November and December 2023. “He is actively peddling new lies that could impact U.S. elections after meeting with Russian intelligence officials in November.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Prosecutors, Alexander Smirnov, ” Smirnov, David Weiss ’, Smirnov, “ Smirnov, Joe Biden’s, Smirnov’s, Weiss, “ Mr, ”, “, CNN’s Holmes Lybrand, Cheri Mossburg Organizations: CNN, FBI, Prosecutors, House Republicans, ” Prosecutors Locations: Ukraine, Russia, United States, Kyiv, Russian

☆ Ex-Informant Accused of Lying About Bidens Said He Had Russian Contacts
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Glenn Thrush | Alan Feuer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

informant accused of making false bribery claims about President Biden and his son Hunter — which were widely publicized by Republicans — claimed to have been fed information by Russian intelligence, according to a court filing on Tuesday. But Mr. Smirnov told federal investigators that “officials associated with Russian intelligence were involved in passing a story” about Hunter Biden. Those disclosures, including Mr. Smirnov’s unverifiable claim that he met with Russian intelligence officials as recently as three months ago, made him a flight risk and endangered national security, Justice Department officials said. Mr. Smirnov had been held in custody in Las Vegas, where he has lived since 2022, since his arrest last week. He was released from custody on Tuesday on a personal recognizance bond after a detention hearing, said his lawyers, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld.

Persons: Biden, Hunter —, Republicans —, Alexander Smirnov, Smirnov, Hunter Biden, David Chesnoff, Richard Schonfeld Organizations: Republicans, Justice Locations: Las Vegas

☆ Hunter Biden says special counsel used Alexander Smirnov’s discredited bribery claims to derail his plea deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Hannah Rabinowitz | Holmes Lybrand | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Hunter Biden’s lawyers accused special counsel David Weiss on Tuesday of using a since-discredited bribery allegation from an FBI informant to blow up his plea deal last year. House Republicans have championed Smirnov’s uncorroborated bribery claims against the Bidens and used his tips to fuel their impeachment inquiry into the president. Prosecutors were asked directly if the Justice Department could still bring charges against Hunter Biden under the Foreign Agents Registration Act despite the deal. Hunter Biden’s attorney, Christopher Clark, said he disagreed with the prosecutor’s assertion. Tuesday’s filing from Hunter Biden’s attorney also accused prosecutors of failing to abide by their obligation to turn over discovery in the Delaware case, including over allegations that Hunter Biden’s alleged gun bag had cocaine on it.

Persons: CNN — Hunter, David Weiss, Weiss, Alexander Smirnov, Smirnov, Weiss ’, Joe Biden, Prosecutors, Smirnov’s, ” Hunter, ”, ” Weiss, Hunter Biden, “, Leo Wise, Hunter Biden’s, Christopher Clark, ” Wise Organizations: CNN, FBI, Republicans, Prosecutors, Justice Department, Foreign Locations: Nevada, Ukrainian, ”, Delaware

☆ Why Jake Tapper made a new series about pre-Trump political scandals
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-18 | by ( Zachary Wolf | Analysis Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —There’s a funny, interesting and very sad new series on CNN featuring Jake Tapper. If you are encountering them for the first time, it will be an education in what Tapper calls his “Jar Jar Binks” theory. TAPPER: The scandals involving Trump are so vast and complex and ongoing. You revisit sex scandals, corruptions scandals and a spy scandal. TAPPER: I have a theory called the “Jar Jar Binks” theory, which is that every great person rises to a level where they can remove from their circle anyone telling them when they’re making a mistake.

Persons: CNN —, Jake Tapper, Rod, Carolina Sen, John Edwards, Tapper, Donald Trump, I’ve, they’d, –, Hunter Biden, Matt Gaetz, George Santos, TAPPER, Trump, Valerie Plame, Blagojevich, Scooter Libby, Libby, Trump –, Roger Stone, Mike Flynn, it’s Organizations: CNN, “, Trump, Illinois Gov, New, South, Senate, Democrats Locations: “ United States, Carolina, New Jersey, South Carolina, Northeast

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