By Donald Trump has wasted little time taking on those in the “deep state” who abused their power and trust of the American people for partisan gain. The president issued an executive order on Monday revoking the security clearances of 51 former intelligence officials who signed a 2020 letter suggesting that emails from Hunter Biden’s laptop resembled characteristics of a Russian information operation.
Former CIA Deputy Director Michael Morell testified before Congress that he helped orchestrate the letter labeling Hunter Biden’s laptop as “Russian disinformation” after being contacted by Antony Blinken, then an advisor to the Biden campaign. Blinken’s outreach on October 17, 2020, included sharing an article suggesting the laptop could be part of a disinformation campaign, prompting Morell to draft the letter. Signed by 51 former intelligence officials, the letter claimed the story bore the “classic earmarks of a Russian information operation” and was strategically released to Politico on October 19, just weeks before the presidential election. Morell later admitted his motivation was to aid Biden’s campaign, and the letter was later used by Biden during a debate to dismiss allegations about his involvement in his son’s business dealings.
Further revelations from the “Twitter Files” suggest the FBI also played a role in suppressing the story by pressuring social media platforms to dismiss the laptop as disinformation, despite knowing its contents were authentic. This controversy adds to allegations of election interference and undermines claims of impartiality within the intelligence and law enforcement communities.
Although many of the officials affected by Trump’s order no longer hold active security clearances, the move reflects Trump’s determination to take action against those who misled the public.
The directive requires the director of national intelligence to submit a report within 90 days detailing any misconduct related to the letter and proposing disciplinary actions, reported CNN. Notable signatories of the letter include prominent officials from the Obama and Bush administrations, such as former Director of National Intelligence Jim Clapper and former CIA Director John Brennan. The order accuses these individuals of misusing their intelligence credentials to undermine the credibility of reporting on Hunter Biden’s laptop, and it alleges that Bolton’s memoir jeopardized national security while undermining the trust future presidents may have in their advisors.
Mark Zaid, a lawyer representing several signatories, criticized the executive order as a violation of free speech, calling it an unprecedented attack on individuals exercising their First Amendment rights. Zaid emphasized that the letter was reviewed through appropriate CIA clearance procedures to ensure it did not include classified information. Meanwhile, Hunter Biden’s legal team has raised concerns that some materials on the laptop may have been altered. The laptop was reportedly dropped off at a Delaware repair shop in 2019, where its contents were accessed before the FBI seized it months later.
The president didn’t just stick to those who lied about the Hunter Biden laptop, however. The order also included John Bolton, his former national security advisor.
The order stated, “Federal policymakers must be able to rely on analysis conducted by the Intelligence Community and be confident that it is accurate, crafted with professionalism, and free from politically motivated engineering to affect political outcomes in the United States. The signatories willfully weaponized the gravitas of the Intelligence Community to manipulate the political process and undermine our democratic institutions.”
“This fabrication of the imprimatur of the Intelligence Community to suppress information essential to the American people during a Presidential election is an egregious breach of trust reminiscent of a third world country. And now the faith of Americans in all other patriotic intelligence professionals who are sworn to protect the Nation has been imperiled,” it added.
The order stated that John Bolton published a memoir for monetary gain after his termination from his White House position in 2019. It also accused the former UN ambassador of publishing a book “rife with sensitive information drawn from his time in government” and “the memoir’s reckless treatment of sensitive information undermined the ability of future presidents to request and obtain candid advice on matters of national security from their staff.”
The order also stated that the publication posed a significant risk of publicly exposing classified material.
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