Judd Legum
1. GOP complaints that Hunter Biden got a "sweetheart deal" really aren't about his plea deal on tax and gun charges
Republicans are upset that Hunter and Joe Biden have not been charged with accepting millions in bribes
But you can't prosecute based on a fantasy
🧵
Judd Legum
2. For years, Republicans have been desperate for proof that Joe Biden abused his power as Vice President to influence the Ukrainian government for cash. Trump was so eager to advance that narrative that it resulted in Trump's first impeachment.
Judd Legum
3. More recently, Republicans have focused on a document produced by the FBI known as an FD-1023. An FD-1023 is a form "special agents use to record raw, unverified reporting from confidential human sources."
Judd Legum
@RepJamesComer@twitter.com 5. The FD-1023 "describes an alleged criminal scheme involving then-Vice President Biden and a foreign national relating to the exchange of money for policy decisions."
There are supposedly 17 audio recordings of Hunter and Joe Biden documenting the scheme!
Judd Legum
4. @RepJamesComer@twitter.com ays he was informed about an FD-1023 from June 2020 by a whistleblower.
He and Chuck Grassley have now been provided with an unredacted version.
Many other Republicans have seen a redacted version.
Judd Legum
@RepJamesComer@twitter.com 11. The fact that Hunter Biden or Joe Biden were not charged with accepting bribes does not reflect a "sweetheart deal" or a "two-tiered system of justice." It reflects the fact that there is no credible evidence that they accepted bribes.
Judd Legum
@RepJamesComer@twitter.com 10. The larger problem is there is no indication that audio recordings actually exist. The confidential source also said "that it is not unusual for Ukrainian business executives to brag and show off and that he could not offer any opinion as to the veracity of the allegations"
Judd Legum
@RepJamesComer@twitter.com 9. Finally, Zlochevsky told Rudy Giuliani, who was seeking dirt on the Bidens as Trump's campaign attorney, that he never spoke to Joe Biden.
Judd Legum
@RepJamesComer@twitter.com 8. Second, Joe Biden did pressure Ukraine to oust Shokin, but that was "the official position of the U.S. government" and its allies.
Why would Burisma to pay Joe and Hunter Biden $5 million each to push a position that was already the official policy of the US?
Judd Legum
@RepJamesComer@twitter.com 7. First, Shokin was not investigating Burisma for corruption. So it wouldn't make sense for Burisma to bribe either Biden with $5 million to end an investigation that was not happening.
Judd Legum
@RepJamesComer@twitter.com 6. Specifically, the FD-1023 alleges that Joe and Hunter Biden were offered $5 million each in exchange by Burisma owner Mykola Zlochevsky in exchange for Joe Biden's assistance in ousting Ukranian prosecutor Viktor Shokin
The problem with this allegation is it makes no sense
Judd Legum
@RepJamesComer@twitter.com 12. For more reporting and analysis grounded in FACTS subscribe to Popular Information.
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