FBI Branded Biden Critics Russian Disinformation Conduits
FBI Branded Biden Critics Russian Disinformation Conduits
The News
Newly declassified documents show the FBI secretly labeled critics of Joe Biden — including journalists, members of Congress and senior Republicans — as "conduits" of Russian disinformation, according to reports on the files.
The records describe a secret bureau effort, referred to as Operation Round River, that reporting says worked to discredit allegations about the Biden family's foreign business dealings as "Russian disinformation" during the 2020 election.
Timeline
The Washington Times, analyzing the declassified documents, reports the FBI opened a criminal investigation into President Trump based partly on liberal news media reporting and the Democratic Party-funded dossier.
According to the documents, the FBI had 14 informants feeding it information on the Biden family related to Ukraine while running an operation to cast the corruption allegations as Russian disinformation.
Files released via a White House transparency task force surface publicly, drawing coverage across conservative outlets.
Reactions
Reporting on the documents says the FBI labeled former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former Attorney General Bill Barr as "conduits" of Russian disinformation.
Conservative writers called the disclosures "horrifically bad" and pointed to the earlier "Disinformation Governance Board" as evidence of a broader pattern.
Not everyone accepts the framing: Raw Story cited national security writer Marcy Wheeler, who argued an unsigned, undated letter attributed to FBI Director Kash Patel is the "centerpiece" of a propaganda push and does "Russia's bidding in plain sight."
What's Next
FBI Director Kash Patel has pledged to investigate agents involved, according to the reporting.
Expect further document releases from the transparency task force and continued political fights over the 2020-era Russia investigations.
More
The declassified files were highlighted by outlets including the Washington Examiner, The Center Square and the Daily Caller News Foundation, which reported the bureau branded Biden corruption critics as Moscow "mouthpieces."
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