New documents released by the House Judiciary Committee have revealed that the FBI actively suppressed internal confirmation of the Hunter Biden laptop story on the same day the New York Post published its bombshell report in October 2020, raising serious questions about potential interference in pre-election information flow.
FBI leadership issued explicit instructions to employees to “do not discuss [the] Biden matter” on October 14, 2020, when the Post’s story first broke, according to chat logs obtained by the committee.
The logs further indicate that an FBI analyst who had confirmed to Twitter (now X) that the laptop story was genuine was promptly placed under a “gag order” by a senior FBI lawyer, effectively silencing the source of verification.
The internal communications paint a concerning picture of deliberate suppression, suggesting that the analyst had been “admonished” by FBI staff because “he wont shut up” about the laptop’s authenticity. This suggests an organized effort to control the narrative around a story with significant political implications just weeks before a presidential election.
The Post Millennial reported back in June 2023 that Laura Dehmlow, an official with the FBI’s foreign influence task force, provided additional context during a closed-door deposition.
She testified that during a call with Twitter representatives seeking clarity, an FBI analyst had directly confirmed the laptop’s authenticity when asked straightforwardly about its legitimacy.
“Somebody from Twitter essentially asked whether the laptop was real,” Dehmlow stated in her testimony, “and one of the FBI folks who was on the call did confirm that, ‘yes, it was,’ before another participant jumped in and said, ‘no further comment.'”
According to Chair Jim Jordan’s report on the matter, “Following the meeting with Twitter, FBI personnel immediately deliberated internally about what information about the laptop the FBI would reveal to social media companies when asked in upcoming meetings.”
Perhaps most notably, Dehmlow admitted during her testimony that the FBI had been aware of the laptop’s authenticity since November 2019, nearly a full year before the story became public.
The laptop story contained emails and messages suggesting potential influence peddling involving then-candidate Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden.
In the crucial weeks before the 2020 election, the story was heavily restricted on major social media platforms, with many mainstream news outlets initially dismissing it as potential Russian disinformation – a characterization now contradicted by the FBI’s own internal knowledge.
The significance of these revelations has prompted decisive action from the current administration. President Donald Trump has revoked the security clearances of former intelligence officials who signed a letter claiming the laptop was Russian disinformation, a letter that shaped public perception despite apparently contradicting what the FBI already knew.
Trump has also ordered agencies to bar these former officials from accessing secure facilities, signaling the seriousness with which the administration views the matter.
High-profile names like former DNI James Clapper and former CIA Director John Brennan are among those who have lost their clearances.
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced earlier this month, ““Per [President Trump’s] directive, I have revoked security clearances and barred access to classified information for Antony Blinken, Jake Sullivan, Lisa Monaco, Mark Zaid, Norman Eisen, Letitia James, Alvin Bragg, and Andrew Weissman, along with the 51 signers of the Hunter Biden ‘disinformation’ letter.”
