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Former spy chief John Ratcliffe denies reports that China sent three balloons under Trump
Gazette ^ | 02/05/2023 | Ryan King, Washington Examiner

Posted on 02/05/2023 1:01:36 PM PST by BenLurkin

Former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe refuted accounts from Pentagon officials that Chinese balloons entered U.S. airspace on at least three occasions under the Trump administration.

Ratcliffe, who served as former President Donald Trump's spy chief from 2020 to 2021, joined a few other former Trump administration officials claiming to have no awareness of such an incursion and described the recent balloon incident as "unprecedented."

"I can refute it. It didn't happen," Ratcliffe said...

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mark Esper both denied knowing about a similar instance of a Chinese balloon hovering through the United States.

Military officials have indicated that a high-altitude balloon arrived near U.S. airspace on Jan. 28 and flew through domestic and Canadian airspace for roughly eight days. The Pentagon refrained from downing the device right away and waited until it was off the coast of the continental U.S. to avoid causing any harm to civilians from the debris.

(Excerpt) Read more at gazette.com ...


TOPICS: Front Page News; Government
KEYWORDS: 2023; 202301; 20230128; biden; china; chineseballoon; fakenews; johnratcliffe; libmyths; lyinbiden; montana; neukam; pdjt; ratcliffe; spyballoon; spyballoons; stephenneukam; trump
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1 posted on 02/05/2023 1:01:36 PM PST by BenLurkin
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The Biden regime has no compunction about releasing false information — but what is scary is that it has minions in the bureaucracies who aid an abet them!


2 posted on 02/05/2023 1:03:49 PM PST by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion, or satire, or both.)
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To: BenLurkin

Why would we expect even a hint of honesty from a regime put in place via lies and fraud?


3 posted on 02/05/2023 1:06:12 PM PST by euram (allALL)
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To: BenLurkin

I remember when the fake news used to always say “without any proof” the President claims...

That appears to have stopped when Biden stole the election.


4 posted on 02/05/2023 1:10:17 PM PST by for-q-clinton (Cancel Culture IS fascism...Let's start calling it that!)
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To: BenLurkin
They are still running with this story.

Chinese balloons flew over US three times during Trump administration: officials

by Stephen Neukam - 02/05/23 1:52 PM ET

https://thehill.com/policy/defense/3844511-chinese-balloons-flew-over-us-three-times-during-trump-administration-officials/

5 posted on 02/05/2023 1:10:53 PM PST by McGruff (Don't underestimate Joe's ability to f*** things up - Barack Obama)
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To: BenLurkin

This guy on youtube tracks military/surveillance flights over the USA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHqBXwLDwZ0

His takeaway - there are a lot more US balloons flying regularly over North and South America.


6 posted on 02/05/2023 1:11:54 PM PST by PGR88 (, )
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To: BenLurkin

When you screw up, blame the other guy. that is what is happening here. Nobody from the former administration ever heard of Chinese Weather balloons in US airspace. It never happened. And the Biden administration continues to send out false information and outright lies to cover their disastrous regime.


7 posted on 02/05/2023 1:12:24 PM PST by realcleanguy (quickly things are falling apart, now that the )
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To: BenLurkin

I also don’t believe it happened, China developed this tech fairly recently, and even then they have to launch it from Tibet to get it high enough in the atmosphere.


8 posted on 02/05/2023 1:12:45 PM PST by Truthsearcher
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To: BenLurkin

If balloons delivering were products,maybe my Amazon orders would come faster.(/S)


9 posted on 02/05/2023 1:22:03 PM PST by Mark (DONATE ONCE every 3 months-is that a big deal?)
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To: BenLurkin

This has been declared true by the filthy online leftist media.

Trying for “everybody’s doing it.”

Attempt is like defending Bill Clinton by saying “All husbands are having adulterous affairs but their wives don’t know it yet.” Dirty scum Leftists.😡


10 posted on 02/05/2023 1:22:05 PM PST by frank ballenger (You have summoned up a thundercloud. You're gonna hear from me. Anthem by Leonard Cohen)
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To: realcleanguy
When you screw up, blame the other guy. that is what is happening here. Nobody from the former administration ever heard of Chinese Weather balloons in US airspace. It never happened. And the Biden administration continues to send out false information and outright lies to cover their disastrous regime

We know that Obama is running the WH besides seeing the idiot Biden come up with the Idiotic in ur face answer about jobs instead of talking about the Balloon.

11 posted on 02/05/2023 1:23:06 PM PST by TheConservativeTejano (The Business of America is Business)
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To: BenLurkin

From the daily mail-—

“””The Pentagon said on Saturday that at least three such aircraft were spotted above American territory under the Trump administration”””

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11715549/Trump-DENIES-Pentagons-claim-three-Chinese-balloons-entered-airspace-watch.html


Notice how the Daily Mail uses the word ‘aircraft’ and then the word ‘territory’ in their ‘lying thru their teeth’ headline.

Yeah, there are probably several instances of spy planes or balloons going over or near some obscure US territory in the vast South Pacific ocean like the Bikini Atoll.

The Pentagon is not our friend.


12 posted on 02/05/2023 1:29:57 PM PST by Presbyterian Reporter
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To: BenLurkin

This denial by John Ratcliff about alleged Trump-era “China balloon incursions” proves Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his lapdog generals at the Pentagon are a bunch of liars who will say and do anything to avoid accepting direct responsibility for their repeated failures.

The Department of Defense no longer defends ANYTHING except the profits of weapons manufacturers. We American people do not need the Pentagon and its hundreds of generals and admirals drawing huge salaries and benefits. They have proven they cannot defend America or win wars.

The U.S. military has been reduced to protecting cowardly and crooked politicians from angry Americans. They quickly launch armed fighter jets to intercept and possibly shoot down a small Cessna airplane that might stray over Joe Biden’s beach house but cannot shoot down a damn China balloon in its week-long, leisurely spying over the entire country.

The military can erect fences and razor wire around the Capitol Building in short order, to keep out American “peasants”, but cannot protect the southern border of the USA from an invasive horde of millions of unvetted foreigners from every country on Earth.


13 posted on 02/05/2023 1:34:42 PM PST by Gnome1949
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To: Presbyterian Reporter
"The Pentagon is not our friend.

The current military "leadership" is just as corrupt and dishonorable as the DementiaJoe Regime.
14 posted on 02/05/2023 1:35:35 PM PST by indthkr
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To: BenLurkin

Even Trump hater John Bolton who would have ZERO issue being a prick and backstabbing Trump again said this absolutely did NOT I repeat did NOT happen..but its not stopping Fox News even now repeating the same BS and claiming that it happened twice..so yeah like it happens every time, repeat the lie long enough and the media will repeat it like a parrot and one day they will come out at the end of their broadcast when no one is watching and say “Yeah remember that story about Trump and supposedly three Chinese balloons, turns out it never happened..so sorry”


15 posted on 02/05/2023 1:38:44 PM PST by Sarah Barracuda
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To: TheConservativeTejano

And the Iranian, Valerie Jarrett.


16 posted on 02/05/2023 1:40:44 PM PST by Theophilous Meatyard III
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To: TheConservativeTejano
We know that Obama is running the WH besides seeing the idiot Biden come up with the Idiotic in ur face answer about jobs instead of talking about the Balloon.

Also running the Pentagon for his stooge, it would seem. Teh Halfrican fired any and all officers that wouldn't rub with his posse.

17 posted on 02/05/2023 1:50:14 PM PST by Chad C. Mulligan (eleutheromaniac)
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To: BenLurkin

Really wish that lies from high ranking officials were dealt with criminally.


18 posted on 02/05/2023 2:03:34 PM PST by Blue Highway
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To: for-q-clinton
I remember when the fake news used to always say “without any proof” the President claims... That appears to have stopped when Biden stole the election.

The Presidential Election of 2020 was outright stolen by the Idiot Biden.

The Chinese steal technology all the time and we have given them everything.

The Democrats are going to pay big time in 2024.

I know that we will be watching the movies when Biden gives his state of the union.

19 posted on 02/05/2023 2:06:23 PM PST by TheConservativeTejano (The Business of America is Business)
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To: Chad C. Mulligan

You spelled P*ssy wrong. 😂


20 posted on 02/05/2023 2:07:36 PM PST by Blue Highway
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