Posted on 04/29/2023 5:28:11 AM PDT by george76
51 is an interesting number, isn’t it? It’s one shy of a deck of cards. It’s the mysterious “Area” where a top-secret U.S. military installation associated with UFOs is located. It’s exactly three times the number of intelligence agencies who confirmed Russia tried to interfere in the 2016 election. It’s a large number — an impressive one, even. And when 51 current and former intelligence officials sign and publicize a letter, it’s designed to get your attention and, undoubtedly, persuade you of the import of what is being said.
And so it did — for many Americans, the characterization of the Hunter Biden laptop emails as bearing “all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation” by dozens of intelligence officials (who surely could be trusted, right?) allowed them to confidently wave off the New York Post’s blockbuster story and the corroboration provided by Tony Bobulinski as not just false but likely the work of the Russians, thus making it virtually incumbent on them to reject it and vote accordingly.
But just as Hunter’s abandoned laptop eventually proved to be legit, recent testimony from former acting CIA Director Mike Morrell before the House Judiciary Committee highlighted a direct line between Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign and the letter’s genesis. (You don’t say?!)
Ever since Matt Taibbi and Michael Shellenberger testified before Congress in March, I’ve become a fan of Taibbi’s weekly podcast with Walter Kirn, “America This Week.” In last week’s episode, which arrived on the heels of the latest Morrell revelations, Taibbi and Kirn pondered the role of the famed 51, remarked on the fact that the entire endeavor was neatly put together and publicized in a matter of days (leaving virtually no time for any investigation into the material on the laptop), and noted that rather than holding intelligence officials up as authorities, we ought rightly be suspect of their messaging, given that it’s literally their job not to tell the truth. If I recall correctly, they also questioned whether there were other intelligence officials who didn’t sign the letter (given that so stinkin’ many did).
That set me to wondering about that too: If 51 current and former intelligence officials signed off on the misleading letter, was there anyone left who didn’t? It called to mind that scene from “In & Out” where Joan Cusack’s dumped-at-the-altar bride screams out to the night: “Is everybody gay?!”
...
(Okay – odd reference, I know. That’s just how my brain works sometimes.)
But it’s a legit question: If 51 officials signed the thing (merely at the behest of Morrell and without independently investigating the situation), were there any who declined to do so? And if so, why haven’t we heard from them?
Enter Dan Hoffman, former CIA station chief. On Thursday, he penned an OpEd in the Washington Times titled: “Why I didn’t sign the Hunter Biden laptop letter.” In it, Hoffman explained that between concerns over his wife’s health and his unease with signing his name to something he’d not independently verified, he wasn’t comfortable signing off on the letter, so declined to do so. From his OpEd:
When I served at the CIA and we did not know an answer to a policymaker’s query, we asked our sources for more information in pursuit of more informed executive decision-making. Even as Mr. Morell was circulating the letter, then-Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe was saying publicly that the Hunter Biden laptop was “not part of some Russian disinformation campaign.”
The letter I was being asked to sign clearly stated: “We do not have evidence of Russian involvement — just that our experience makes us deeply suspicious that the Russian government played a significant role in this case.”
U.S. intelligence analysts needed more time to conduct forensics on the laptop and for the FBI to complete its investigation and unravel the details, especially the convoluted part about the computer having been found at a repair shop in Delaware.
But the email I received from Mr. Morell did not invite any further discussion or debate. The letter was a fait accompli. It was being passed around for signatures, not edits.
I’ve never been one to put my name to words someone else wrote on my behalf. Moreover, I was focused at the time on other, more important priorities: My wife, Kim, was late into her third year of fighting cancer, which would take her life in a few months. She entered hospice care a couple of weeks after the presidential election.
And so, I did not sign the letter and never responded to the email.
Okay – so now we know there was at least one — and Hoffman is certain there were others. He joined Fox News’ John Roberts Friday afternoon to discuss his OpEd and the reason he wasn’t willing to sign on to the letter.
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During their exchange, Hoffman indicated that he received the letter on October 18, 2020, and, at first glance, it seemed natural to lay the blame for the laptop at the Kremlin’s doorstep. But there was no evidence of Russian involvement — which the letter noted (though the media and Joe Biden were seemingly comfortable intimating otherwise) – and he felt like there needed to be a forensic analysis of the laptop and its contents in order to properly determine its origins.
He remarked again on the convoluted nature of how the laptop came to the public’s attention and reiterated that he simply felt he needed more information. He did note that: “There were many others who didn’t sign it,” though he didn’t name names. (Perhaps someone should follow up with Mr. Hoffman — does he still have the email/communication from Morrell inviting him to sign the letter? Were other officials cc’d on that correspondence? Has he spoken with others who’ve said they declined the invitation? Or is he just basing that on the number who actually signed versus the number who received it?)
He also explained that when he was at the CIA, they would sit in Mike Morrell’s office and hash out complicated issues. In contrast, there was no debate invited here. As someone who spent many years focused on Russia, Hoffman was a little surprised he and others with similar backgrounds weren’t involved in the discussion prior to being asked to sign the letter.
Hoffman also emphasized the importance of distinguishing between retired and active officials, noting that even those actively serving vote, but they serve and fulfill their duties regardless of who the president is and don’t (or aren’t supposed to) allow politics to determine how and whether they do that. On the other hand, retired officers can engage politically, as long as they don’t reveal classified intelligence.
Hoffman stated that he did not know that Morrell had discussed the letter with now-Secretary of State Antony Blinken (who was then with the Biden campaign) and agreed that basically drew a straight line from that communication to the letter’s publication to Joe Biden’s use of it at the debate.
Lastly, Roberts asked Hoffman: “Why’d you wait two years?” Hoffman responded that it was Morrell’s testimony that changed his calculus. In other words, when he realized that Morrell had organized the letter at the behest of Blinken/the campaign, he saw that direct line and felt compelled to speak out about it.
For what it’s worth, I appreciate Mr. Hoffman speaking out and hope his doing so might encourage some of those others who opted not to sign the letter to do so as well. But I’m left a bit bemused about this. I’m just a simple former lawyer/now editor/writer who follows politics. And it didn’t take Morrell’s recently revealed testimony for me to connect those dots. That just confirmed what I’d long suspected. So I have a little difficulty believing it took experienced intelligence officials until now to realize what went on here and to decide it might be worth saying something.
From the article:
“In other words, when he realized that Morrell had organized the letter at the behest of Blinken/the campaign, he saw that direct line and felt compelled to speak out about it.”
Everyone with one ounce of common sense or logic knew immediately that: A. the laptop was real, and B. the letter was disinformation instigated by the Biden campaign. But not this high ranking intelligence official! He had to read it in the news to figure it out. Our entire government is either idiotic or natural born liars.
Here are the signatories to the August 19, 2020, Hunter Biden Laptop Letter:
Jim Clapper
Former Director of National Intelligence
Former Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence
Former Director of the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency
Former Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency
Mike Hayden
Former Director, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Director, National Security Agency
Former Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence
Leon Panetta
Former Director, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Secretary of Defense
John Brennan
Former Director, Central Intelligence Agency
Former White House Homeland Security and Counterterrorism Advisor
Former Director, Terrorism Threat Integration Center
Former Analyst and Operations Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Thomas Finger
Former Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Analysis
Former Assistant Secretary for Intelligence and Research, Department of State
Former Chair, National Intelligence Council
Rick Ledgett
Former Deputy Director, National Security Agency
John McLaughlin
Former Acting Director, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Deputy Director, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Director of Analysis, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Director, Slavic and Eurasian Analysis, Central Intelligence Agency
Michael Morell
Former Acting Director, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Deputy Director, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Director of Analysis, Central Intelligence Agency
Mike Vickers
Former Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence
Former Operations Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Doug Wise
Former Deputy Director, Defense Intelligence Agency
Former Senior CIA Operations Officer
Nick Rasmussen
Former Director, National Counterterrorism Center
Russ Travers
Former Acting Director, National Counterterrorism Center
Former Deputy Director, National Counterterrorism Center
Former Analyst of the Soviet Union and Russia, Defense Intelligence Agency
Andy Liepman
Former Deputy Director, National Counterterrorism Center
Former Senior Intelligence Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
John Moseman
Former Chief of Staff, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Director of Congressional Affairs, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Minority Staff Director, Senate Select CommiSee on Intelligence
Larry Pfeiffer
Former Chief of Staff, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Director, White House Situation Room
Jeremy Bash
Former Chief of Staff, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Chief of Staff, Department of Defense
Former Chief Counsel, House Permanent Select CommiSee on Intelligence
Rodney Snyder
Former Chief of Staff, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Director of Intelligence Programs, National Security Council
Chief of Station, Central Intelligence Agency
Glenn Gerstell
Former General Counsel, National Security Agency
David B. Buckley
Former Inspector General, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Democratic Staff Director, House Permanent Select CommiSee on Intelligence
Former Counterespionage Case Officer, United States Air Force
Nada Bakos
Former Analyst and Targeting Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Patty Brandmaier
Former Senior Intelligence Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Deputy Associate Director for Military Affairs, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Deputy Director of Congressional Affairs, Central Intelligence Agency
James B. Bruce
Former Senior Intelligence Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Senior Intelligence Officer, National Intelligence Council
Considerable work related to Russia
David Cariens
Former Intelligence Analyst, Central Intelligence Agency
50+ Years Working in the Intelligence Community
Janice Cariens
Former Operational Support Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Paul Kolbe
Former Senior Operations Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Chief, Central Eurasia Division, Central Intelligence Agency
Peter Corsell
Former Analyst, Central Intelligence Agency
Brett Davis
Former Senior Intelligence Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Deputy Director of the Special Activities Center for Expeditionary Operations, CIA
Roger Zane George
Former National Intelligence Officer
Steven L. Hall
Former Senior Intelligence Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Chief of Russian Operations, Central Intelligence Agency
Kent Harrington
Former National Intelligence Officer for East Asia, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Director of Public Affairs, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Chief of Station, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Analyst, Central Intelligence Agency
Don Hepburn
Former Senior National Security Executive
Timothy D. Kilbourn
Former Dean, Sherman Kent School of Intelligence Analysis, Central Intelligence Agency
Former PDB Briefer to President George W. Bush, Central Intelligence Agency
Ron Marks
Former Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Twice former staff of the Republican Majority Leader
Jonna Hiestand Mendez
Technical Operations Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Emile Nakhleh
Former Director of the Political Islam Strategic Analysis Program, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Senior Intelligence Analyst, Central Intelligence Agency
Gerald A. O’Shea
Senior Operations Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Served four tours as Chief of Station, Central Intelligence Agency
David Priess
Former Analyst and Manager, Central Intelligence Agency
Former PDB Briefer, Central Intelligence Agency
Pam Purcilly
Former Deputy Director of Analysis, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Director of the Office of Russian and European Analysis, Central Intelligence Agency
Former PDB Briefer to President George W. Bush, Central Intelligence Agency
Marc Polymeropoulos
Former Senior Operations Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Acting Chief of Operations for Europe and Eurasia, Central Intelligence Agency
Chris Savos
Former Senior Intelligence Officer, Central Intelligence Officer
Nick Shapiro
Former Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor to the Director, Central Intelligence Agency
John Sipher
Former Senior Operations Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Deputy Chief of Russian Operations, Central Intelligence Agency
Stephen Slick
Former Senior Director for Intelligence Programs, National Security Council
Former Senior Operations Office, Central Intelligence Agency
Cynthia Strand
Former Deputy Assistant Director for Global Issues, Central Intelligence Agency
Greg Tarbell
Former Deputy Executive Director, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Analyst of the Soviet Union and Russia, Central Intelligence Agency
David Terry
Former Chairman of the National Intelligence Collection Board
Former Chief of the PDB, Central Intelligence Agency
Former PDB Briefer to Vice President Dick Cheney, Central Intelligence Agency
Greg Treverton
Former Chair, National Intelligence Council
John Tullius
Former Senior Intelligence Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
David A. Vanell
Former Senior Operations Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Winston Wiley
Former Director of Analysis, Central Intelligence Agency
Former Chief, Counterterrorism Center, Central Intelligence Agency
Kristin Wood
Former Senior Intelligence Officer, Central Intelligence Agency
Former PDB Briefer, Central Intelligence Agency
In addition, nine additional former IC officers who cannot be named publicly also support the arguments in this letter.
Who doesn’t believe Obama was involved, and is still involved?
The 51 traitors who did sign the letter need to be punished.
Thank you for listing the 51 liars, including the nine phonies so “supersecret, James Bond self-identifiers” who just can’t be named.
They should all be sentenced to death by public hanging on the mall in Washington.
Insufficient. They should lose E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G!!
Why cannot they be named publicly. They entered the political debate.
What is amazing, that without any sources these 51 liars would opine on something so essential to the putcome of the election, that they encouraged a lie using their professional credentials, rather than telling Blinkin to go shove it.
It took the author eight paragraphs to get to naming the guy – – it’s Dan Hoffman. We’ve seen him on Fox (back when people were watching Fox, that is).
Put this in perspective folks. The Deep State wasn’t just rigging an election.
There were willing to place blame on a nuclear superpower and risk escalation of war by accusing them of rigging our elections.
They risked nuclear war to rig the election against Donald Trump.
That’s how evil these scumbags are. They are traitors and they deserve the fate of traitors after a fair trial of course.
These fifty one “former intelligence officials” now take their place in history along side the bigoted “one hundred prominent German physicists” who signed a letter denouncing Einstein.
During their exchange, Hoffman indicated that he received the letter on October 18, 2020, and, at first glance, it seemed natural to lay the blame for the laptop at the Kremlin’s doorstep. But there was no evidence of Russian involvement — which the letter noted (though the media and Joe Biden were seemingly comfortable intimating otherwise) – and he felt like there needed to be a forensic analysis of the laptop and its contents in order to properly determine its origins.
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it was an op all along & they knew it before they signed
so it was actually a fraud
thanx for the list
I didn’t see nellie ohr on the list??
p
Ah, but instead they are labeled as heroes under the #JihadJunta.
...and now he’s a FORMER chief
Let a curse be upon each and every one of them for a hundred centuries for what they did to our nation.
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