For those readers who are vaguely aware of charges that Joe Biden is a corrupt politician, here’s the latest:
An FBI informant has been indicted on two counts for allegedly feeding the bureau false information about President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden during the 2020 presidential campaign.
Alexander Smirnov, 43, disliked Joe Biden and was arrested in Las Vegas after returning from a trip overseas, according to the Justice Department. The case grew out of the special counsel investigation being led by David Weiss, who is also leading the case against Hunter Biden. Weiss had been appointed by then-President Donald Trump as the top federal prosecutor in Delaware. [NBC News]
It’s important to notice that the charges are coming from David Weiss, the Trump-appointed federal prosecutor for Delaware, who was retained by President Biden when he assumed office in order to avoid any appearance of impropriety.
That is to say, the guy who was most interested in Smirnov’s claims being true has just charged Smirnov with fabricating those claims and then feeding them to the FBI.
Now, does this prove Joe Biden is not corrupt? Nyaaaah. Proving a negative and all that. However, as Steve Benen points out,
For Biden’s GOP detractors in the House and Senate, Smirnov’s claims were foundational. He was the party’s star witness. Sean Hannity’s Fox News show ran with this informant’s claims in at least 85 separate segments last year. The Republicans’ entire “bribery” conspiracy theory was based on the claims this one “informant” made to the FBI.
And
“In a detailed indictment, Special Counsel David Weiss — who was appointed by former President Donald Trump — has demonstrated how key evidence at the heart of House Republicans’ impeachment inquiry is based on a lie,” House Oversight Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin said in a statement.
And, more importantly, it demonstrates the basic incompetence of Rep Comer, et Republican al, at this job. Verifying information is Job 1, and they failed it. It’s one thing to investigate allegations; it’s quite another to talk it up, go on Fox News and yammer about it, and, worse yet, take secret depositions and then LIE about them.
This is performative morality.
