Headline RoundupMay 8th, 2023

Fact Check: Did Antony Blinken Lie to Congress About Hunter Biden Emails?

Summary from the AllSides News Team

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) accused Secretary of State Antony Blinken of lying to congress regarding his previous contact with President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden. Is this true?

Claim: Speaking on Fox News, Johnson claimed that Blinken “lied boldface to Congress about never emailing Hunter Biden” during a voluntary interview with the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and Finance committees in December 2020. Johnson added, “My guess is he told a bunch of other lies that hopefully we'll be able to bring him and his wife back in, tell them to preserve their records.”

Fact Check: In the 2020 interview, Blinken told congress that he met with Hunter Biden once over lunch while serving as deputy secretary of state under President Barack Obama. Page 30 of the transcription of the interview states that Blinken answered “no” to the question— “Did you have any other means of correspondence with [Hunter Biden]–emails, texts?” Johnson’s claim comes from data recovered from Hunter Biden’s laptop, which included an email correspondence with Blinken. According to FactCheck.org, there were two emails— one sent by Hunter Biden requesting a meeting prior to the lunch, and one sent by Blinken following the lunch reading, “great to see you and catch up.”

Why Does It Matter? Johnson and other Republican lawmakers are probing Hunter Biden’s previous role on the board of a Ukrainian oil and gas company during Joe Biden’s time as vice president under Obama to investigate claims of corruption. 

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