FACT CHECK: Media Claims That Biden Didn't Attempt to Bribe Ukraine Completely False
The mainstream media did back flips to try to prove that former Vice President Joe Biden did not bribe Ukraine to fire a prosecutor named Viktor Shokin, who was investigating a business that employed the former Vice President’s son, Hunter.
Claims by the leftist media that Biden was not bribing Ukraine are, on their face, false and easily invalidated with a basic inquiry. One example of such an inquiry is an interview with the prosecutor who was fired.
The Claim: Biden Didn’t Bribe the Ukraine
Snopes, holds that Joe Biden’s direct role in Ukraine was not suspect because “Shokin was not fired for investigating Burisma, but for his failure to pursue corruption investigations — including investigations connected to Burisma.”
USA Today reported, “sources ranging from former Obama administration officials to an anti-corruption advocate in Ukraine say the official, Viktor Shokin, was ousted for the opposite reason Trump and his allies claim.”
Politifact reported,”Biden did want Shokin fired, but western leaders had widely criticized the prosecutor general as corrupt and ineffective. Biden was leading a widespread consensus in asking for the removal,” they reported without listing anyone other than Democrat-leaning career bureaucrats who disagreed with Trump on his new foreign policy agenda.
So, did these outlets accurately portray what happened between Biden, Poroshenko, and Shoken when they claimed Biden didn’t engage in any “bribery” or “quid pro quo” with the Ukrainian government?
SURVEY SAYS: False
According to OANN reporting, Viktor Shokin, the former Ukraine prosecutor who was fired over the 1 billion dollars in American aid, testified that he was fired because Biden, the former Vice President, demanded it.
Shokin said that he was told by then Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko that “Biden’s temper is overflowing,” and that Biden was angry about Shokin investigating his son’s ties in Burisma, a Ukranian energy company.
Shokin said that it was “because of Biden that I had to step down as prosecutor general.”
“I was told that we needed the Billion dollars because we are at war. It was on a phone call. Shokin said that Poroshenko told him seized Burisma assets were making Biden very mad. “I was doing my job, we had reason to freeze those assets,” Shokin said.
OANN says that there is no charge of corruption against Shokin, even though the American “leftist” Media says there are such charges.
“Look at Biden’s transcript with Poroshenko. Americans need to demand to see it. Look at Biden’s conversations with Biden, who was protecting his son, Hunter and was shielding illegal money-laundering operations,” Shokin said.
OANN has reported on a 12 page sworn affidavit by Shokin, saying that Biden was interfering with corruption investigations.
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