During a heated back-and-forth on NBC’s “Meet The Depressed”, Congressman Byron Donalds (R-FL) repeatedly took moderator Kristen Welker to task for disseminating the fake narrative that Robert Hur’s special counsel report cleared President Joe Biden of any criminal wrongdoing in the classified documents case.
Watch as Rep. Donalds SHUTS DOWN Welker’s multiple attempts at alleging that the Hur Report exonerated Biden, as aired on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, February 25th, 2024::
KRISTEN WELKER: Again, there's no evidence that the indictments against him are politicized, but sticking to this question, were you offended at all by his comments, Congressman?
U.S. REP. BYRON DONALDS: No, I wasn't because I understood what the president was talking about and like I've said now for the third time. He talked about all the reasons why minority voters want to support him and Kristen, let me push back a little bit. You have to acknowledge the fact that now that the Robert Hur report has come out, about Joe Biden’s misuse of classified information which is a violation of the Espionage Act. He had no rights to any of those documents when he was a senator or vice president and yet there are no charges against Vice- against President Biden, but President Trump is under prosecution? Come on now. We know that doesn't make sense at all.
WELKER: I have to hit the pause button for one minute, Congressman, Because the Hur report was very clear…
DONALDS: Sure.
WELKER: …that there was not enough evidence to bring charges against President Biden. And that ultimately there was not any ev-
(CROSSTALK)
DONALDS: Kristen, I gotta push back on you. That is not tr-- No, no, no, no, no…
WELKER: That is what the Hur report said. That is exactly what the Hur report said. Yes, it is. It said that there wasn’t enough- there wasn’t enough evidence to bring charges…
DONALDS: The Espionage Act is clear. The Espionage Act is clear. You cannot possess those documents as a senator or vice president. You have no right to those documents as a senator or vice president. They must remain in a secure facility. Joe Biden took them from a SCIF. That's a violation of the Espionage Act. Period.
WELKER: Okay. All right. Bottom line, though, Hur himself said there wasn't enough evidence to bring charges.
Fake News Alert: Despite Welker’s THREE passes at stating the contrary as fact, Hur NEVER said that there wasn’t enough evidence to bring charges. A reasonable human being with grade-school reading comprehension can figure out, upon reading the actual report, that there were TONS of evidence of wrongdoing.
Hur’s actual findings were that his team was unable to prove all of the elements of any potential charges beyond a reasonable doubt, and that he wouldn’t have prosecuted anyway based on DoJ regulations concerning aggravating and mitigating factors (such as prosecuting a sitting president). Also, the “weak memory” and “declining cognitive ability” stuff.
The exchange came on the heels of Welker trying to pin Donalds down on statements made by Trump at a black conservatives’ event in South Carolina, and Donalds firing back with the weaponization of government against Trump and how some in the black community might react to that.
Welker tried to work Donalds, a Trump vice presidential shortlister per reports, on the recent IVF controversy, as well as on border security. The outcome was the same.
Rep. @ByronDonalds SHUT DOWN Kristen Welker like she was the border pic.twitter.com/FfkhU8hgK7
— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) February 25, 2024
This may well be one of the most forceful denunciation of the Senate border bill that we’ve seen be allowed to go to air. Welker took multiple passes on border security, including using the Trump-endorsing Border Patrol Union’s endorsement of the bill as an appeal to authority. Here again, she was shut down.
Welker’s interview of Donalds seemed like an attempt to take down a potential Trump running mate, and failed miserably.
