Federal prosecutors just raised the stakes in the Hunter Biden laptop saga. Early Tuesday, they filed a superseding complaint against two former FBI counterintelligence officials, Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides. It accuses them of obstructing a congressional proceeding and lying to lawmakers about their roles in the bureau’s Hunter Biden investigations, CBS News reports.
The filing landed just hours before a preliminary hearing in Washington’s federal court, set for 11 a.m. Eastern. As of this writing, no court ruling had come out. Their lawyers are challenging the charges. Remember, a complaint is an accusation, not a conviction, and the law presumes both innocent.
Key Takeaways
- Prosecutors filed a superseding complaint early Tuesday accusing Floris and Benavides of obstructing Congress and lying to lawmakers.
- The charges center on House Judiciary Committee testimony from July 19 and Sept. 28, 2023.
- The case focuses on Round River, an FBI task force operation tied to Hunter Biden reporting before the 2020 election.
- Floris’s lawyers call the charges meritless, and CBS describes the new filing as unsigned and unsworn.
- A magistrate judge refused to delay Tuesday’s hearing, where prosecutors must show probable cause.
What the Hunter Biden Laptop Case Alleges
First, the players. Floris served as deputy assistant director of the FBI’s Foreign Influence Task Force from mid-2019 through mid-2022. Benavides was its section chief from mid-2019 through the 2020 election. Both later sat for interviews with the House Judiciary Committee in 2023.
According to the original complaint, Floris faced this question: “Did you have any involvement in the Hunter Biden investigation?” She answered, “I did not.” Benavides, meanwhile, faced a question about when he learned of a criminal investigation tied to the Hunter Biden laptop. His answer: “The Wikipedia page.”
Prosecutors tell a very different story. The complaint says Floris “was in frequent communication with the case team for over a year” about Hunter Biden. It also says the task force hosted classified briefings on the case in which both officials “were active participants.”
What Was Round River?
At the heart of the case is Round River, a task force operation. The complaint says it focused on collecting “derogatory informant reporting on, among other things, Hunter Biden, to flag the reporting as Russian disinformation.” In addition, prosecutors say both officials took part in defensive briefings for Sens. Chuck Grassley and Ron Johnson on Aug. 6, 2020.
Why the Hunter Biden Laptop Story Still Matters
Conservatives remember 2020. Hunter Biden left his laptop at a Delaware repair shop, and its contents became a flashpoint before the election. Yet many in Washington waved off much of the story as possible Russian disinformation. That framing shaped what voters heard in the final weeks of a presidential race.
So if senior FBI officials later misled Congress about their part in it, that is serious. Lying to Congress is a federal crime for a reason. After all, oversight only works when witnesses tell the truth. Otherwise, the people’s representatives cannot check an agency with enormous power over American lives.
The House Judiciary Committee put it bluntly after last week’s charges: “The cover-up didn’t work.” The Daily Mail reported that post.
Now DOJ Has to Prove It
However, accountability in the Hunter Biden laptop case means proof, not headlines. And this case already has problems. CBS describes the new complaint as unsigned and unsworn. Also, prosecutors charged the pair by criminal complaint instead of a grand jury indictment, which CBS calls highly unusual for three-year-old allegations.
Worse, Raw Story reports that the revised affidavit softened key claims. For example, Floris’s alleged “scores of conversations” about Hunter Biden became simply “conversations.” At the same time, the new obstruction count accuses the pair of acting “corruptly,” and prosecutors will have to prove that intent.
Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui already called the way prosecutors charged the case “strange.” He also rejected a prosecution request to delay the hearing by two weeks or more. “This is the Sword of Damocles hanging over their heads,” he said.
To be fair, the defense is fighting hard. Floris’s lawyers called the new count “just as meritless as the first one.” Earlier, they said, “Nikki Floris is a patriot.” Benavides’s attorney, Ron Safer, said, “The government has had the information about this for years.”
Midterm Timing Hurts the Hunter Biden Laptop Case
Next, the calendar. The midterms are next Tuesday, Nov. 3. Justice Department norms have long urged prosecutors to avoid overt steps in politically sensitive cases close to an election, CBS notes. As a result, every rushed filing hands the defense a ready-made argument: politics, not evidence.
That is a self-inflicted wound. We made a similar point when DOJ charged James Comey a third time. If the evidence is strong, DOJ does not need a deadline. Instead, it should build the case carefully, take it to a grand jury, and let a jury decide.
Equal justice cuts both ways. Former FBI officials do not get a pass for lying to Congress. But they also deserve the same due process as any citizen. Conservatives who demanded fairness after 2020 should demand it now, too.
Bottom line: if these officials lied, they should answer for it. Now DOJ has to prove it in a courtroom, not on a campaign calendar. For more conservative commentary on the FBI, the Justice Department, and the midterms, visit the World of Payne homepage and follow the show on X, Facebook, and Instagram.
