The Federal Bureau of Investigation finds itself once again under the spotlight – and this time, the issue could be far more serious than chasing fairy stories of Russian collusion or messy FISA warrant applications. Congressional Republicans allege the Bureau is in possession of a memo that describes, in detail, a “pay-to-play” scheme involving Joe Biden and at least one unidentified foreign national. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), the Senate Budget Committee ranking member, claims this information was provided by a whistleblower. The FBI is now under pressure to produce the document and explain what, if any, steps it has taken to corroborate the information contained therein.
Whistleblower Allegation: The Most Serious Biden Scandal Yet?
The internal FBI document is said to be an unclassified FD-1023. That designation describes a form containing notes or a transcript of an FBI interview with a “confidential human source.” Along with Rep. James Comer (R-KY), who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, Grassley sent a letter, dated May 3, to Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray. The letter warns that “Congress will proceed to conduct an independent and objective review of this matter, free from [DOJ and FBI] influence.” Comer and Grassley wrote:
“[I]t has come to our attention that the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) possess an unclassified FD-1023 form that describes an alleged criminal scheme involving then-Vice President Biden and a foreign national relating to the exchange of money for policy decisions. It has been alleged that the document includes a precise description of how the alleged criminal scheme was employed as well as its purpose.”
Additionally, Comer sent a subpoena to the FBI, demanding it produce all FD-1023 forms, “including within any open, closed, or restricted access case files, created or modified in June 2020, containing the term ‘Biden,’ including all accompanying attachments and documents to those FD-1023 forms.”
Republicans are urging the White House to cooperate, given the seriousness of the allegations. "What I would hope to hear is, look [the White House is] going to cooperate fully," said Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), who also sits on the House Oversight Committee, “and they're going to urge the FBI to make sure that the documents are released to the House, because if you haven't done anything wrong, you certainly want that information to be out there to prove that you haven't done anything wrong.”
Joe Biden (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) echoed that sentiment during a May 3 interview with Fox News’ Lawrence Jones. “We need to know what that evidence is, and I don't know why anybody would want to hide it,” the senator asserted. “I think the Democrats should come forward. If they are so confident that Joe Biden didn't do anything wrong, great – then release the document. Let's get it all out there in public. Sunshine is the best disinfectant. We all need to see it. Let's get it all out there so people can see what the facts are.”
On the website of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, whistleblower rights and protections are described. “Whistleblowers perform an important service for the public and the Department of Justice (DOJ) when they report evidence of wrongdoing,” the site explains. “All DOJ employees, contractors, subcontractors, grantees, subgrantees, and personal services contractors are protected from retaliation for making a protected disclosure.”
Though it would be easy to assume the whistleblower in this case is, or was, a DOJ employee – and possibly an employee of the FBI – there is no other information available, at this time, regarding how he or she has knowledge of the FBI document.
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