Declassified FBI emails reveal a shocking cover-up of China’s alleged 2020 election meddling. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley dropped a bombshell this week, exposing internal FBI correspondence that suggests the bureau buried intelligence about a Chinese plot to sway the presidential race, as Just the News reports. The truth, it seems, was less important than protecting the FBI’s image.
Grassley’s release of 47 pages of partially redacted FBI emails from fall 2020 shows the agency ignored a raw intelligence report about China’s plan to use fraudulent mail-in ballots to boost Joe Biden. The report, originating from the FBI’s Albany Field Office, detailed a scheme involving counterfeit U.S. driver’s licenses to create thousands of fake votes. Yet, the FBI chose to sit on this explosive intel, raising questions about its priorities.
In summer 2020, a confidential human source tipped off the FBI counterintelligence about China’s election interference intentions. The Intelligence Information Report, titled with alarming specificity about fraudulent licenses and mail-in votes, was disseminated in August but recalled in September. The recall, ordered by FBI Headquarters, reeks of political maneuvering.
The recall was spearheaded by FBI officials Nikki Floris and Tonya Ugoretz, who cited the need to reinterview the source. An Albany office official noted on Sept. 25, 2020, that the report was “coordinated and disseminated in textbook fashion.” So why pull it? Because it clashed with then-FBI Director Christopher Wray’s congressional testimony.
Wray told Congress in September 2020 that foreign meddling wasn’t a significant threat, focusing instead on disinformation as the primary concern. “We have not seen coordinated national voter fraud,” Wray claimed to the House Homeland Security Committee. The IIR’s claims of a Chinese ballot scheme would have exposed his assurances as hollow.
Albany staff warned that suppressing the report for political reasons was “dangerous.” One official wrote on Sept. 25, 2020, that the IIR was getting attention across the FBI Headquarters. Yet, the Foreign Influence Task Force (FITF) refused to reissue it, citing vague concerns about “authoritativeness” and potential disinformation.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported in July 2020 that it seized 19,888 counterfeit U.S. driver’s licenses from China and Hong Kong at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. While CBP didn’t directly link these to voter fraud, the timing aligns with the IIR’s claims. The FBI’s failure to investigate this connection is a glaring oversight.
The source, deemed reliable by the FBI, provided additional context after reinterviewing, yet Headquarters still refused to republish the report. “The reporting will contradict Director Wray’s testimony,” a redacted official noted on Sept. 30, 2020. Protecting Wray’s narrative trumped national security.
Grassley didn’t mince words: “These records smack of political decision-making.” He accused the Wray-led FBI of prioritizing its image over investigating credible intelligence. The senator’s push for transparency under new FBI Director Kash Patel signals a much-needed reckoning.
Albany staff expressed frustration, warning that suppressing field-generated intelligence could starve other agencies of critical data. The FITF, led by Laura Dehmlow in October 2020, dismissed the IIR as potentially part of China’s disinformation campaign. This knee-jerk skepticism smells more like deflection than diligence.
An email from a redacted official on September 28, 2020, labeled the recall a “substantive” move, driven by Floris and Ugoretz. The FITF’s China Unit Chief reiterated on October 8, 2020, that the report wouldn’t be reissued due to its alleged lack of authority. Conveniently, this kept Wray’s testimony unchallenged.
Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino alleged in June that prior FBI leadership hid evidence of China’s plot. Patel turned over the IIR to Congress last month, confirming it was shared with U.S. intelligence agencies on Aug. 24, 2020, before its recall. The public deserves to know why this was buried.
Wray’s September 2020 testimony downplayed China’s role, focusing on Russia as the primary threat. “The intelligence community’s consensus is that Russia continues to try to influence,” he told the House. Meanwhile, the IIR’s allegations of Chinese meddling were quietly shelved to avoid contradicting him.
Trump called it out in 2020, tweeting that China posed a “far greater threat” than Russia and warning about mail-in ballot vulnerabilities. Wray’s dismissal of such concerns now looks like a deliberate sidestep. The FBI’s new leadership must restore trust by confronting these failures head-on.
Grassley’s release, backed by FBI Assistant Director Marshall Yates’ summary, exposes a bureau more concerned with optics than truth. “Intelligence must be fully investigated,” Grassley demanded this week. Americans can only hope Patel’s FBI will finally put national security above political games.
