Nine former high-ranking military and national security officials who endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president on Sunday were also among those who dismissed Hunter Biden’s laptop as Russian disinformation in a letter nearly four years ago, according to Fox News Digital.
The endorsement letter, published by a group called National Security Leaders for America, was signed by 741 former senior military and national security leaders.
Among the officials who signed both letters are former Director of National Intelligence Jim Clapper, former CIA Directors Michael V. Hayden, Leon E. Panetta, and John Brennan, former Acting CIA Director John E. McLaughlin, former CIA chief of staff Laurence M. Pfeiffer, former Department of Defense chief of staff Jeremy Bash, former CIA chief of station John Sipher, and former National Intelligence Council Chair Gregory Frye Treverton.
In October 2020, shortly before the presidential election, the New York Post published a report on the contents of Hunter Biden’s laptop. Soon after, 51 former intelligence officials released a statement on October 19, 2020, claiming that the laptop had “all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation,” casting doubt on its authenticity.
Hunter Biden’s laptop came into public focus after he left it at a Delaware repair shop in 2019, and it became a significant issue during the 2020 presidential campaign. The 2020 letter from these former national security leaders played a role in influencing media coverage, with many outlets avoiding reporting on the laptop’s legitimacy at the time. The letter also provided then-candidate Joe Biden with political leverage during debates with former President Donald Trump.
However, in 2022, outlets such as the Washington Post and New York Times verified thousands of emails from the laptop. This year, the laptop became a key piece of evidence in Hunter Biden’s criminal trial related to his 2018 firearm purchase, during which he was found guilty. The FBI also confirmed the laptop’s legitimacy during the trial.
The 2020 letter resurfaced again this year when a joint report from three House committees suggested that CIA contractors had “coordinated” with the Biden campaign in 2020 to discredit allegations of influence-peddling by the Biden family, based on the information from Hunter’s laptop.
In their recent endorsement of Harris for the 2024 election, the former officials praised her as “prepared and strategic,” while criticizing Donald Trump as “impulsive and ill-informed.” The letter emphasized the importance of strong leadership and national security.
“We are former public servants who swore an oath to the Constitution. Many of us risked our lives for it. We are retired generals, admirals, senior noncommissioned officers, ambassadors, and senior civilian national security leaders. We are Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. We are loyal to the ideals of our nation—like freedom, democracy, and the rule of law—not to any one individual or party,” the letter stated.
The letter went on to say, “We do not agree on everything, but we all adhere to two fundamental principles. First, we believe America’s national security requires a serious and capable Commander-in-Chief. Second, we believe American democracy is invaluable. Each generation has a responsibility to defend it. That is why we, the undersigned, proudly endorse Kamala Harris to be the next President of the United States.”
National Security Leaders for America president Rear Admiral Michael Smith, USN (Ret.), defended the signatories of both letters in a statement to Fox News Digital. He argued that while the 2020 letter was “well-reasoned but ultimately incorrect,” it does not negate their years of public service. He added that their criticisms of Trump and support for Harris as a “strategic and knowledgeable leader” remain valid.
