Annals of the Biden Crime Family - The Ashley Diary

A new scandal is shaking the Biden Crime family. To summarize, Joe's daughter Ashley was in drug rehab (whoda thunk?) prior to his being elected President, and allegedly her diary went missing. She claims it was stolen, others claim it was left behind when she left. I could see the latter, and her believing the former in any event. The diary contained some potentially damaging content to Joe Biden, and, not shockingly, it ended up being shopped around to various conservative sites, and excerpts were published. One site that claimed to be in possession of them, but didn't publish them was Project Veritas, who said because they could not verify their source, they would not publish them, and in fact, offered them back to the Biden family, and law enforcement, and were refused. Last week, the FBI, acting on warrants from the DOJ's Southern District of New York, raided the offices of Project Veritas, the homes of Project Veritas employees, including James O'Keeffe, it's founder, essentially confirming that the diary was, in fact Ashley's, and the NYT was tipped off to the raids (ala Roger Stone and CNN).

Kevin Downey at PJ Media, Diary Allegedly Belonging to Ashley Biden Reveals Disturbing Personal Details“

Was I molested. I think so — I can’t remember specifics but I do remember trauma,” the author wrote at one point. She also mentions taking “probably not appropriate” showers with her father when she was a child.

Althouse, "People Tied to Project Veritas Scrutinized in Theft of Diary From Biden’s Daughter/The F.B.I. carried out search warrants in New York as part of a Justice Department investigation into how pages from Ashley Biden’s journal came to be published by a right wing website."

The NYT reports.

This causes National File — the place that published the entire diary last year— to write: "BOMBSHELL: New York Times, FBI Confirm Legitimacy of Ashley Biden Diary Published by National File."

Heavy,  Ashley Biden’s Diary: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know. John Sexton at Haut Hair, What is going on with Project Veritas and the FBI?. Ace, in red italic type, FBI Raids Project Veritas Reporters' Apartments, Because Someone Offered Them What Might Or Might Not Have Been Joe Biden's Daughter's Diary. Jennifer Van Laar at Red State, After Project Veritas Founder James O'Keefe Goes Public With FBI Raids of Journalists' Homes, His Home Is Raided. PM, FBI raids Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe's home

National File, Fox News Legal Analyst: Law Doesn’t Care How Ashley Biden’s Diary Was Obtained, FBI Wrong To Investigate. John Hinderacker at Power Line, The FBI and the Stolen Diary  "But an FBI investigation? A year after the diary disappeared and was published? Since when is the alleged theft of a woman’s diary a federal crime? Let alone a federal crime that warrants investigation by the FBI?" Jonathon Turley, FBI Raids Project Veritas Writers . . . Over A Missing Biden Diary?

So why the raids? Since when does the FBI conducted raids over missing diaries?

The FBI can cite the interstate elements of the alleged theft as raising a federal crime. However, what is the crime? It is not clear if they are suggesting that the responsible parties were seeking to sell the diary or that there was some national security element (which would be bizarre since Biden’s daughter was writing before her father ever became president).

Journalist organizations are routinely given material removed from businesses, agencies, or private owners without permission by confidential sources. If this is a federal crime subject to FBI raids, what happened to the new media policies of the Biden Administration after the Tucker Carlson controversy?

There are a host of unanswered questions. Here are five to start with:

1. What was the context for the diary’s loss? (Did Ashley Biden leave the diary in a room or was it stolen?)
2. What is the alleged federal crime (and what is the precedent for a major federal investigation over such an alleged theft)?
3. What precautions were taken by the Biden Administration in light of the claimed media status of the targeted individuals?
4. Why was there a delay in this action being taken if the alleged theft occurred a year ago?
5. Has this matter been under investigation for a year and did the White House request the intervention of the FBI?

Regardless of how one feels about Project Veritas, there should be calls from media outlets for some answers to these basic questions. Likewise, Congress should be seeking such answers as part of its oversight responsibilities.

Insty, The media won’t be asking these, because the media — like the FBI — see their primary role as protecting the Democratic establishment from political threats.

Yes, it sure sounds like they are concerned that the diary will reflect negetively on Greasy Joe, but that's not the job of the FBI to investigate diaries, even diaries possibly stolen from a person who became President afterwards. I hate to say it, but imagine if this were one of the Trump daughters. It's also interesting that they went after one of Biden's critics in the media. I think Merrick Garland needs to be asked about this the next time he dares an appearance on Capitol Hill.

But wait, we're not through; Hunter is the gift that keeps on giving. NYPo, Hunter Biden’s wife seen at SoHo gallery as controversial art show opens. Da Mail, Inside Hunter Biden's controversial art show in SoHo: Exhibition opens with tight security after team of lawyers were brought in to scrutinize potential patrons.  Breitbart, Report: Hunter Biden Secretly Holds Second Art Show in SoHo. Matt Palumbo at Bongino, Hunter Biden’s Paintings Sell for More Than Picasso’s "“You can buy a Picasso, a signed Picasso, for $400,000, which is cheaper than Hunter Biden’s $500,000 paintings,” she said. “So I think possibly that the people who are paying insane prices for Hunter Biden paintings are not really doing it for the art.” Dan Chaitin at WaEx hears Hunter Biden's art dealer predicts paintings, priced up to $500K, will be 'cheap' in 10 years. My prediction is that they'll retain a little historical value "Can you believe this shit?" NewsMax, Ethical Questions Still Loom Amidst Hunter Biden Art Showing. Da Mail, Hunter Biden faces fresh cash-for-access questions after his art dealer – who claims to be the only person to know the identity of president’s son’s art buyers - is snapped wearing Camp David hat. At Da Caller, Billionaire Mega-Donor At Center Of Hunter Biden Art Sales Raises Ethics Concerns. Eric Lendrum at Am Great, Radical Left-Wing Billionaire Funding Hunter Biden Art Shows, Raising Ethical Concerns. Althouse catches the NYT shilling for Hunter, "[Hunter] Biden has described his art as 'literally keeping me sane,' and more than one painting here features text..."

"... detailing his addiction and recovery. ('He began to write a new story,' reads the trippy self-portrait.) The painting of the bald figure bears a citation of the pre-Socratic philosopher Parmenides. Mr. Biden has scrawled these quotes, curiously, in a gold paint marker, the sort of craft-shop instrument beloved of scrapbookers. The gold marker recurs throughout this show, outlining bare trees and mountain ridges, rounded Gaelic characters, and quite a few snakes, some of which appear to have been done with a stencil. The snakes may have some personal significance, molting and rebirth and all that; the symbology may also, more than anything, just suggest being a dude. All of this feels rather random, rather personal, rather ingenuous."

From "Hunter Biden: Emotionally Honest, Generically Smooth/The president’s son has turned to art as a career. 'The Journey Home' is his first solo exhibition" by Jason Farago (NYT).

It's such a transparent ruse to cover Hunter's long standing influence peddling business. 

At Da Mail again, Hunter Biden offered to sell US aluminum giant $80,000 'analysis' of Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, who’s now under investigation by the FBI, report on laptop hard drive claims, but not to worry, Jordan Davidson at Da Fed reports that the Hayden Center Doubles Down On Blatant Lie That Hunter Biden’s Laptop Is ‘Russian Disinformation’

The Hayden Center’s blatant confession came during a heated Twitter exchange between the organization and the Acting Director of National Intelligence under the Trump administration Richard Grenell.

“Why did Michael Hayden and the Hayden Center push the phony story that Hunter Biden’s laptop was Russian disinformation?” Grenell asked.

A few hours later, the Hayden Center explained that it amplified the false narrative, which aided Big Tech and the corporate media in suppressing the story just weeks before the 2020 presidential election, “Because our founder @GenMhayden and director @LarryPfeifferDC had signed the letter and believed that the partisan leak had ‘all the classic earmarks of a Russian INFORMATION operation.’”

TNP, How Soros’s Secret Network Used Ukraine to Cover for Hillary, Hunter, and Target Donald Trump. Money. NewsMax, Garland Under Pressure for Hunter Biden Special Counsel

At WaEx, Blacklisted Chinese tech giant Huawei paid Democratic power broker Tony Podesta $500K to lobby Biden. It should be at least a million. 

Wa Free Bee, VOA ‘Whistleblower’ Misrepresented Academic Credentials, "Biden rehired Voice of America program review director after Trump fired her for falsely claiming degree from Sorbonne" Cheating and misrepresentation is the Democrat way, after all. It worked for Greasy Joe. 

Da Mail asks Working from home? Biden hosts budget talks in Delaware with Chuck Schumer and Joe Manchin as it's revealed more than ONE-THIRD of his first 276 days in office have been spent away from the White House. I don't blame him for not wanting to be in DC; it sucks, but Delaware is scant improvement. But if it keeps him close to his favorite rocking chair. . .  'Bonchie' at Red State reports Jill Biden Steps in to Save a Confused, Meandering Joe Biden at White House Event. Mediaite, Poll: A Plurality of Democrats Say They Want Someone Other Than Biden to Be the 2024 Nominee

So did you hear about the fart heard round the world? Da Mail, Joe Biden or the new Mr Trump? Camilla 'hasn't stopped talking about' hearing the President 'break wind' during chat at Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow. It's the beans in that British breakfast. And as for falling asleep at a climate talk? Let him without sin cast the first stone. I've fallen asleep in climate talks. 

Election 2020: Twitter Bans O'Keefe and CIA retracts "Russian Bounty" Reports

Two relatively big stories today. First, in the ongoing fallout of Project Veritas's sting involving a CNN director, who admitted to a cunning young maid (after 5 Tinder dates) that CNN had been all in against Trump in the election, that CNN was rooting for WuFlu deaths and BLM riots for ratings and admitting that coverage of black-on-Asian hate crimes would 'set back' BLM movement (PM). These revelations prompted Twitter to ban James O'Keefe and Project Veritas, accusing them of violating some part of their user agreement. It's like they're not even trying to hide it anymore. Ace, Twitter and CNN Team Up to Ban James O'Keefe and Project Veritas. PM, Twitter permanently bans Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe "After a scathing series of exposés dropped by Project Veritas about CNN's anti-conservative bias this week, Twitter has suspended the outlet's founder, James O'Keefe." Stephen Kruiser at PJ Media, The Morning Briefing: Area Fascist Jack Dorsey Purges James O'Keefe From Twitter. Tyler O'Neil at PJ Media, BREAKING: James O'Keefe to Sue Twitter Over Suspension Following CNN Sting Videos and John Sexton at Hot Hair, Twitter bans James O'Keefe, O'Keefe says he plans to sue. Insty, HEY, HEY, JACK DORSEY, HOW MANY TRUTHS DID YOU SILENCE TODAY? Twitter Permanently Suspends James O’Keefe for Alleged ‘Platform Manipulation and Spam’ [UPDATE: O’Keefe to sue Twitter for Defamation]. Sundance at CTH, Comrade James O’Keefe Becomes Official Dissident – Permanently Suspended From Twitter for Subversion of State and Big Tech Interests

Project Veritas Founder and CEO James O’Keefe issued a statement today, following the suspension of his personal Twitter account by the big tech giant.

“I am suing Twitter for defamation because they said I, James O’Keefe, ‘operated fake accounts.’ This is false, this is defamatory, and they will pay. Section 230 may have protected them before, but it will not protect them from me. The complaint will be filed Monday.”

The other big one is the quiet revelation that the report that Russians had place bounties on American soldiers lives in Afghanistan, widely used by both the media and Democrat politicians to hammer Trump in the runup to the election, was, well, not very sound. Da Beast, U.S. Intel Walks Back Claim Russians Put Bounties on American Troops, thereby relieving Joe Biden of having to do anything about it.

It was a blockbuster story about Russia’s return to the imperial “Great Game” in Afghanistan. The Kremlin had spread money around the longtime central Asian battlefield for militants to kill remaining U.S. forces. It sparked a massive outcry from Democrats and their #resistance amplifiers about the treasonous Russian puppet in the White House whose admiration for Vladimir Putin had endangered American troops.

But on Thursday, the Biden administration announced that U.S. intelligence only had “low to moderate” confidence in the story after all. Translated from the jargon of spyworld, that means the intelligence agencies have found the story is, at best, unproven—and possibly untrue.

But they though it important enough at the time to leak it to the NYT. Da Caller has a helpful Tweet on how this was used in the election:

SUPERCUT:

A look back on how cable news went all in on the discredited Russian bounties story. pic.twitter.com/QaG9xAqiuR

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) April 15, 2021

Mary Chastain at LI,  Biden Administration Doubts Russia Placed Bounties on U.S. Troops "You want to talk about election manipulation? Let’s look at the latest example of journalism malpractice here in America." Sundance at CTH, U.S. Intelligence Now Says Story of Russian Bounties on American Troops Likely False. Ace, Revealed: The Story About Russia Paying Bounties For Americans' Heads Was Yet Another Psyops Hoax Directed at the US By Its Rogue Enemy Intelligence Agency, the CIA "Via John Sexton at Hot Air -- the CIA concocted another false information operation and directed it at the taxpayers paying for its bullshit." From Twitchy, Glenn Greenwald thread spotlights media member ‘most responsible for spreading deranged conspiracy theories’ There are a lot of contenders, but he picks Rachel Maddow. It's a pretty devastating collection of tweets. I wonder how long it will be before he's banned?

Switching back to the response of corporations to the new Georgia election integrity law, According to Karen Townsend at Hot Hair, Coke is having second thoughts Coca-Cola to conservatives: Never mind, let's be friends. Maybe they realize they have real competition in Pepsi. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.15.21, The Geller Report reports Wall Street Corporations Team Up With Soros-Backed Org To Pressure States Against Reforming Elections. At Red State, 'Bonchie' thinks It Sure Looks Like the MLB Made a Big Mistake by Getting Political

And while Republicans once made up one of the strongest consumer bases for the MLB, things are cratering. Anxious, 

In mid-March, MLB's net favorability rating among Republicans was 47%, the highest of the four major U.S. sports leagues. Since then, it has plummeted to 12%, dropping the league below the NFL and NHL, according to new data.

Saurabh Sharma and Nick Solheim at Am Great, Americans Need to Break the Chains of Corporate Slavery and from Sundance, Ned Ryun Gets it Right, It Will Take Individual State Action to Stop The Advance of Corporatism

A slow awakening amid conservatives?… Is there hope?… This guy gets it. American majority CEO Ned Ryun discusses the distinct difference between corporatism and capitalism and points out how JoeBama’s big government model is based on the principle of letting the multinationals erode civil liberties. 

David Catron at Am Spec, The Voter Suppression Swindle "The facts don’t support Democrats’ lies about election integrity laws." At the Atlantic, Russell Berman points out  The Blue States That Make It Hardest to Vote, "Democrats are criticizing Republicans for pushing restrictive voting laws. But states such as Joe Biden’s Delaware can make casting a ballot difficult. Jazz Shaw at Hot Hair hides Banning voter ID remains a wildly unpopular idea behind the VIP paywall, which doesn't make any sense to me, it's been all over. Eric Felten at Da Fed writes For Years, The New York Times Reported Absentee Voting Boosts Fraud — Until Donald Trump Agreed,"What accounts for the New York Times' change from a dark presentation of absentee voting to a decidedly rosy one? The 2020 election, it appears."

Also From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.15.21, Louder with Crowder catches my drift on Nancy Pelosi Claims She Would Have Knifed Rioters With Her Stiletto.

Sundance, Maricopa County, Arizona, Ballot Audit Will Take Place At State Fairgrounds as Board of Supervisors Refuses to Permit Use of County Tabulations Center

After a few months of back-and-forth legal battles between the Arizona state senate and the Maricopa County board of supervisors, the ballots in Arizona’s most populous county are going to be audited beginning in approximately one week, April 22nd.

However, it is my opinion the Board of Supervisors is intentionally trying to set up an issue with chain-of-custody to nullify the results of the audit.

Maricopa County officials refused to allow the audit to take place in the tabulations center where the ballots are currently stored {Go Deep}. As a result the ballot audit will take place at the Arizona Exposition and State Fairgrounds. The auditors are trying to be as transparent as possible knowing the outcome, if it turns out as predicted to find significant fraud, will be legally challenged.

The auditors are allowing any person who lives in the county to be a participant in the physical audit and re-canvassing. The auditor are being proactive toward establishing transparency and legitimacy; however, the county board of supervisors appears to be operating with an intent to undercut the audit results. [You can follow the audit on Twitter Here] – [You can apply to assist the audit HERE]

Linked at Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Hane Ame and FMJRA 2.0: Yes, That Song ready and waiting at the The Other McCain.