Thread by @kyledcheney

The 'smoking gun' email in the NY Post story — even if it is authentic, given the massive red flags — doesn't actually say what the story says it does.

Also, recall: nytimes.com/2020/01/13/us/…

Again, stipulating that the suspect email is real, there's literally nothing in it that says Joe Biden met with a Burisma adviser.

"The opportunity to meet," may just as easily have meant Hunter promised a meeting in the future that may never have occurred.

Lastly, if such a meeting occurred, it should be pretty easy to pinpoint with accuracy when and where, which would seem an important part of reporting a story like this before blasting out the innuendo — especially given the suspect actors involved.

Important addendum: Nothing about the premise of the story adds up. Every credible source has testified that the prosecutor involved was fired because he was *not* investigating corruption and removing him made it likelier Burisma would face a real probe.

https://twitter.com/danielsgoldman/status/1316357178018738177

NEW: Biden aides who worked closely w the former VP in 2015 said no meeting between Biden and a Burisma adivser occurred.

“I’ve literally never heard of this guy in my life,” said Amos Hochstein, Biden aide / energy expert

w/ @NatashaBertrand

politico.com/news/2020/10/1…

@NatashaBertrand "This is a Russian disinformation operation. I’m very comfortable saying that,” said Michael Carpenter, a former Pentagon aide and official at the Penn Biden Center.

politico.com/news/2020/10/1…

@NatashaBertrand But by Wednesday afternoon, Republicans — who still haven't confronted the problematic Post story itself — united to condemn Twitter/Facebook's move to limit access to the story.

politico.com/news/2020/10/1…

@NatashaBertrand Trump, echoing Giuliani, says the leaked Biden emails are "only the beginning."

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1316501350658707456

@NatashaBertrand The Biden camp and his longtime aides said they couldn't rule out a Pozharskyi interaction w Biden on the sidelines of a broader US-UKR conference, where selfies and handshakes are common.

But they're unaware of one, and it would've been cursory if it happened at all, they said.