Former FBI Informant Re-Arrested on Lying Charges Related to Bidens' Alleged Business Dealings with Ukrainian Energy Company

Unique Points

• Former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov was arrested in Las Vegas on a warrant issued in California for lying about a multimillion-dollar bribery scheme involving President Joe Biden's family.
• Smirnov falsely told his FBI handler that executives from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid President and Hunter Biden $5 million each around 2015. This claim became central to the Republican impeachment inquiry of President Biden in Congress.
• Prosecutors say Smirnov told investigators after his arrest last week that officials associated with Russian intelligence were involved in passing a story about Hunter Biden. They also said he had planned to meet with foreign intelligence contacts during an upcoming trip abroad.

Accuracy

• Former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov falsely told his FBI handler that executives from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid President and Hunter Biden $5 million each around 2015. This claim became central to the Republican impeachment inquiry of President Biden in Congress.
• Smirnov has not entered a plea to the charges, but his lawyers have said their client is presumed innocent and they look forward to defending him at trial.

Deception (75%)

Fallacies (85%)

• The article contains several fallacies.

Bias (85%)

• Smirnov falsely told his FBI handler that executives from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid President Biden and Hunter Biden $5 million each around 2015.

Site Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• The article reports on an ex-FBI source who was accused of lying about his contacts with the Bidens and having Russian contacts. The author also had financial ties to a Ukrainian energy company Burisma that Hunter Biden's father Joe Biden had business dealings with in Ukraine around 2015.

Author Conflicts Of Interest (0%)

None Found At Time Of Publication

Unique Points

• Former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov has been re-arrested in Nevada on a new warrant for the exact same charges as before.
• Smirnov falsely told his FBI handler that executives from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid President and Hunter Biden $5 million each around 2015. This claim became central to the Republican impeachment inquiry of President Biden in Congress.

Accuracy

No Contradictions at Time Of Publication

Deception (50%)

• The article reports that Smirnov was arrested again on the same charges based on an indictment signed by federal district Judge Otis Wright out of California. This implies that Smirnov has been re-arrested, which is not entirely accurate as he was initially charged and released before being re-charged with the same offenses.
• The title of the article implies that Smirnov has been re-arrested for lying about President Biden's family and their alleged dealings in Ukraine. However, this is not entirely accurate as Smirnov was initially indicted on these charges but released by a magistrate judge in Nevada.

Fallacies (85%)

• The article contains an appeal to authority when it cites the indictment of Alexander Smirnov. However, this does not provide any analysis or context for the charges against him.

Bias (85%)

• GOP lawmaker says Republicans were warned about FBI informant's credibility
• He also has extensive contacts in Russia and elsewhere, prosecutors said, and lied to authorities about his access to over $6 million in liquid funds more than enough money for him to live comfortably overseas for the rest of his life.
• Smirnov has been indicted for lying about President Joe Biden

Site Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• The author's previous relationship with Smirnov could compromise her ability to report on him objectively.

Author Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• Alexander Smirnov is an FBI informant who has been charged with lying about President Joe Biden and his family's alleged dealings in Ukraine. This raises questions about the author's potential conflicts of interest, as they may have personal or professional ties to the Bidens.
• The article mentions that Republicans were warned about Smirnov's credibility, which could potentially compromise his ability to act objectively on this topic.

Unique Points

• House Republicans reached a critical point in their bid to impeach Joe Biden: a closed-door interview with the President's younger brother James.
• The Justice Department indicted one of the impeachment inquiry's lead informants for lying to the FBI about the Biden family with dirt from Russian intelligence.

Accuracy

• The House impeachment inquiry has centered on Hunter Biden's squalid past, with a heavy emphasis on his banking records.

Deception (30%)

• FBI informant Alexander Smirnov made false bribery allegations against President Biden and his son Hunter which were later proven to be unfounded.
• The title of the article suggests that there was a closed-door interview with President Biden's younger brother James and that this was a critical point for House Republicans in their impeachment probe against Joe Biden. However, it turns out that this interview did not take place

Fallacies (85%)

• The article contains several examples of logical fallacies. The first is an appeal to authority when it states that the House Republicans reached a critical point in their bid to impeach Joe Biden by interviewing James Biden's younger brother. This statement implies that the testimony was important and significant, but there is no evidence presented to support this claim.
• The article contains inflammatory rhetoric when it quotes Rep. Dan Goldman stating that GOP investigators are now acting as an agent of Vladimir Putin by pursuing impeachment against Biden. This statement implies a direct connection between Russia and the impeachment effort, which may not be accurate or supported by evidence.

Bias (85%)

• The interview with Joe Biden's younger brother James was overshadowed by another development: The Justice Department indicting one of the inquiry's lead informants for lying to the FBI about dirt from Russian intelligence.

Site Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

Author Conflicts Of Interest (0%)

None Found At Time Of Publication

Unique Points

• . Ken Buck went on the attack against his colleagues.
• House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan and House Oversight Chair James Comer had both been warned ahead of time that the story sold by their primary witness, Alexander Smirnov, was full of holes.

Accuracy

• . The credibility of Smirnov's statement was not known at the time they received it.
• The GOP impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden has crashed and burned since its main witness was indicted for lying to the FBI.

Deception (30%)

• The author implies that Ken Buck's allegations against Jim Jordan and James Comer are based on a primary witness who has been proven to be unreliable. However, this is not entirely accurate as there may have been other evidence or sources of information available to Buck before making his statements.
• Ken Buck claims that the credibility of Smirnov's testimony was not known at the time they received it. This implies that Jordan and Comer were unaware of any potential issues with their primary witness, which is likely not true.

Fallacies (85%)

• Ken Buck, who has been a prosecutor for 25 years, said that as a prosecutor he never went public until he could prove the reliability of a statement. This is irrelevant to the topic at hand and does not provide any evidence or support for his argument.

Bias (85%)

• > And yet people, my colleagues went out and talked to the public about how this was credible and how it was damning and how it proved President Biden's at the time Vice President Biden's activities or Joe Biden receiving money. This clearly is not a credible link at this point.<
• > Ken Buck went on the attack against his colleagues, revealing that House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan and House Oversight Chair James Comer had both been warned ahead of time that the story sold by their primary witness, Alexander Smirnov, was full of holes. <

Site Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• New Republic has a history of publishing articles that are critical of President Biden.

Author Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

Unique Points

• Former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov was re-arrested on charges of lying to the bureau about the Bidens' alleged business dealings with a Ukrainian energy company
• Smirnov falsely told his handler that executives from Burisma paid President Biden and Hunter Biden $5 million each around 2015, which became central to the Republican impeachment inquiry in Congress

Accuracy

• A former FBI informant, Alexander Smirnov, was re-arrested on charges of lying to the bureau about the Bidens' alleged business dealings with a Ukrainian energy company
• Smirnov falsely told his handler that executives from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid President Biden and Hunter Biden $5 million each around 2015, which became central to the Republican impeachment inquiry in Congress

Deception (30%)

• The title implies that Smirnov has been re-arrested for lying about Bidens' business dealings when he was actually arrested on charges of making false statements and creating a false record.
• The author uses sensationalism by stating that Smirnov is 'actively peddling new lies'. However, there is no evidence to support this claim in the article.

Fallacies (70%)

• The author uses an appeal to authority by stating that the FBI is investigating a controversial democratic mayor who schmoozed with Biden last month.

Bias (85%)

• actively peddling new lies that could impact U.S elections
• phony multimillion-dollar bribery scheme involving the Bidens and the Ukrainian energy company Burisma

Site Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• Bradford Betz has been reported to own stock in an energy company.
• The article mentions an ex-FBI informant who was previously charged with lying about Joe Biden's business dealings. The author is Bradford Betz and David Spunt, both of whom have a financial stake in energy companies that may be affected by the topic they are reporting on.

Author Conflicts Of Interest (50%)