This is an old revision of this page, as edited by JzG (talk | contribs) at 23:32, 20 October 2020 (←Created page with ':'''Q''': Why is this presented as a conspiracy theory when the New York Post and others say it is true? :'''A''': The New York Post is not considered reliable b...'). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 23:32, 20 October 2020 by JzG (talk | contribs) (←Created page with ':'''Q''': Why is this presented as a conspiracy theory when the New York Post and others say it is true? :'''A''': The New York Post is not considered reliable b...')(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)- Q: Why is this presented as a conspiracy theory when the New York Post and others say it is true?
- A: The New York Post is not considered reliable by Misplaced Pages, and the core components of the conspiracy theory have been known to be false since 2016.
- Q: But Joe Biden withheld US aid to get Ukrainian President Poroshenko to fire the prosecutor!
- A: Viktor Shokin was widely regarded as corrupt. There were demands for his removal from within Ukraine as early as June 2015, before Joe Biden got involved. US policy for removal was bipartisan, and the US was joined by the European Union, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Shokin was removed after an overwhelming vote of the Ukrainian Parliament in March 2016. Contemporaneous investigations showed no evidence of undue influence.
- Q: But Shokin was investigating Burisma!
- A: No, the entire problem was that he was not investigating Burisma, or multiple other companies. The investigation of Burisma was on hold, and there is evidence that Shokin was pursuing investigations only when the companies refused to pay bribes. Removing Shokin made it more likely that Burisma would be investigated, not less.
- Q: But the laptop!
- A: The FBI has been warning since 2019 that Rudy Giuliani is being used as a conduit for disinformation by Russian intelligence. The provenance of the laptop is considered dubious by all mainstream sources, and the entire operation has parallels with the Russian "Fancy Bear" operation against Emanuel Macron in 2017. The idea that Hunter Biden, a California resident, would drop off an unencrypted laptop at a Delaware computer shop run by a Trump supporter, rather than use an Apple store or a local trusted repairer, is also considered dubious by mainstream sources. At this time, no serious sources take the laptop at face value.
- Q: But Hunter Biden was not qualified for the Burisma job!
- A: Hunter Biden had experience as a corporate lawyer, an EVP of a bank, and in government. He was hired to advise on corporate governance. It is not a stretch to assume that this was in part at least due to his name, but there was no nepotism involved - he was not hired to a job by a family member, or due to a family member's influence.
- Q: But Hunter Biden had drug and alcohol problems!
- A: This is well known and openly acknowledged. Joe Biden spoke about it in the first presidential debate.
- Q: But you're representing mainstream media as truth, when conservative media says a different thing!
- A: The opposite of mainstream is fringe. The opposite of conservative is liberal. Mainstream media contradicting the fringe narrative includes the Financial Times and the Wall Street Journal.