Hunter Biden Emails Have 'Nothing to Do' With Russian Disinformation, National Intelligence Director Says

Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe rejected claims that a Russian disinformation campaign is behind investigation into Hunter Biden's laptop, saying the details of the case are held by the FBI, not U.S. intelligence agencies.

Ratcliffe told Fox Business Monday that last year's impeachment trial revealed it was the Obama administration who were first concerned with the former vice president's son's alleged ties to shady Chinese and Ukrainian contracts. Ratcliffe dismissed House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff's remarks Sunday that any information about Biden's laptop or Ukraine ties are just a Kremlin "smear" campaign. Instead, Ratcliffe said he's urging the FBI to reveal any details of the Hunter Biden investigation which have been known since at least last November.

The Trump administration intelligence chief said he's tired of "people using the intelligence community to leverage some political narrative."

Update - Schiff's office responded to Ratcliffe's remarks in a Monday email to Newsweek: "Director Ratcliffe is purposefully misrepresenting Chairman Schiff's words in an effort to mislead the public and validate the latest attacks by President Trump and his allies on Vice President Biden. The Intelligence Community has stated publicly that Russia is once again seeking to benefit Donald Trump's election campaign by denigrating Joe Biden with attacks the Treasury Department described as, 'false and unsubstantiated narratives'...designed to culminate prior to Election Day."

"The fact that I know so little about what's in those emails and Hunter Biden's laptop underscores the point that I just made: This is not part of some Russian disinformation campaign, the intelligence community has not been involved with Hunter Biden's laptop. Hunter Biden is a U.S. person and he would be subjected to any investigation regarding fraud or investigation would rightfully be within the jurisdiction of the FBI."

Ratcliffe added, "the only intelligence Adam Schiff gets is the intelligence we give him and we have given him no such intelligence."

Schiff prompted the rebuttal from Ratcliffe in remarks to CNN Friday, "We know that this whole smear on Joe Biden comes from the Kremlin, that's been clear for well over a year now that they've been pushing this false narrative about the vice president and his son."

Several emails allegedly composed by the son of the Democratic presidential nominee appear to show terms of agreement with Chinese and Ukrainian companies. The laptop reportedly reveals how Biden was contracted out to receive $10 million a year for three years simply for making introductions and having direct access to the Obama White House.

Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo repeatedly asked if "the big guy" is a reference toward Joe Biden being allegedly set up to receive 10 percent of the international consulting fee payout. Ratcliffe did not specifically address that point but said the Obama administration were the first to express concern about the issue, which was revealed last year during the Trump impeachment process.

Ratcliffe demanded the FBI release the information they have on Biden to Republican Senator Ron Johnson and the GOP-led committees on foreign relations and national security.

Johnson, speaking to Bartiromo over the weekend, said he is "trying to suss out of the FBI, what did they know and when did they know it."

On Monday morning, Bartiromo asked Ratcliffe, "Is Schiff lying?"

"[The FBI] investigation does not center around Russian disinformation," he replied, noting that he personally just declassified much of the intelligence—thus making it unlikely to come to a head before Election Day.

Newsweek reached out to the White House and Biden campaign for additional remarks Monday morning but did not receive replies before publication.

Donald Trump Jr. accused "Schiff, the Dems & the media of repeating false propaganda about 'Russian disinfo' w/ZERO EVIDENCE" Monday morning after the interview.

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