Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has accused the Justice Department and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence of potentially "misclassifying" documents to conceal alleged wrongdoing by the Biden family. In a letter to Attorney General Todd Blanche, FBI Director Kash Patel, and Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton, Grassley and Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., stated that records obtained by Grassley's office suggest the FBI may have deliberately "misclassified information" to obstruct congressional inquiries into Operation Round River, a task force that reportedly compiled derogatory information on Joe and Hunter Biden.
The senators expressed concerns that federal law enforcement and the Intelligence Community may have used resources to downgrade allegations of criminality related to the Biden family without sufficient investigation. The available records also raise questions about how federal records were stored and managed, according to the lawmakers.
The letter referenced an FBI supervisory special agent's email mentioning "classification caveats" requested by the FBI's Office of General Counsel, citing "past experience with Crossfire Hurricane," the investigation into the Trump campaign's alleged collusion with Russia in 2016. The Republicans charged that under FBI Director Christopher Wray, the bureau may have "intentionally misclassified information" in a way that would create more obstacles for access by Congress or the public.
Grassley's office also received documents indicating that the Round River team might have operated as a Special Access Program, with its output given high classification levels. This operation reportedly served as a central point for claims about the Bidens, including potential "criminal information," which were then reportedly discredited as foreign disinformation, possibly originating from Russia.
Grassley stated that he has been investigating Operation Round River since July 2022 and that much of the information he has received was found "parked away in a hidden classified compartment." The committee chairman also noted that a December 2019 email from FBI Section Chief Tony Riedinger to FBI Supervisory Special Agent Joe Pientka appeared to "corroborate existing public evidence that President Trump was the target of a political hit" and should be "declassified to the fullest extent possible under the law."
Earlier this year, the White House Government Transparency Task Force declassified some Round River documents. These revealed that the FBI was seeking to "red flag" information from confidential informants regarding Biden family "corruption and other Ukraine-related topics."
Representatives for the DOJ, FBI, and ODNI did not immediately respond to requests for comment.