Media Hypes Op-Ed To Smear Pompeo
In a clear attempt to pan Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the news media has been hyping a New York Times op-ed by Bill Taylor in which the former top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine attempts to lecture Pompeo about why Americans should care about Ukraine.
Missing from much of the news media coverage is that Taylor is not only a star witness in the Democrats’ impeachment campaign but has evidenced a close relationship with the Atlantic Council think tank partnered with Burisma, the natural gas company at the center of allegations regarding Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.
The links may be particularly instructive after Breitbart News reported that itinerary for a trip to Ukraine in August organized by the Burisma-funded Atlantic Council for ten Congressional aides reveals that a staffer on Rep. Adam Schiff’s House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence held a meeting during the trip with Taylor. The pre-planned trip took place after the so-called whistleblower officially filed his August 12 complaint and reportedly after a Schiff aide was contacted by the so-called whistleblower.
In addition to a direct relationship with the Atlantic Council, Taylor for the last nine years also served as a senior adviser to the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), which has co-hosted events with the Atlantic Council and has participated in events co-hosted jointly by the Atlantic Council and Burisma.
Another senior adviser to the USUBC is David J. Kramer, a long-time adviser to late Senator John McCain. Kramer played a central role in disseminating the anti-Trump dossier to the news media and Obama administration. Taylor participated in events and initiatives organized by Kramer.
Taylor also led an election observation delegation in Ukraine several months ago for a George Soros-funded organization that at the time boasted Hunter Biden on its small chairman’s council, as Breitbart News reported.
Last week, Taylor wrote a biting op-ed in the New York Times titled, “Yes, Secretary Pompeo, Americans Should Care About Ukraine.”
The missive was in response to a statement Pompeo allegedly made during an interaction with a NPR reporter when he purportedly suggested Americans don’t care about Ukraine. Pompeo has accused the reporter of violating “the basic rules of journalism and decency.”
CNN described the piece as “800 words that add up to a dressing down.”
Taylor is not just a bystander on the matter of Ukraine. He’s been a star witness in the Democrats’ impeachment trial.
Two months before he came out of retirement to serve as the highest ranking U.S. official in Ukraine, Taylor led an election observer delegation to Ukraine’s April 21, 2019 second round presidential election for the National Democratic Institute (NDI) organization.
The delegation’s mission, according to NDI literature, was to “accurately and impartially assess various aspects of the election process, and to offer recommendations to support peaceful, credible elections and public confidence in the process.”
Taylor led the team along with former Director of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) Audrey Glover and former Minister for European Union Affairs Birgitta Ohlsson.
Hunter Biden at the time served on NDI’s ten person Chairman’s Council, which describes itself as bringing together “leaders from corporate, philanthropic, and academia sectors to provide expertise, counsel and resources to help the Institute meet these evolving challenges.”
Biden was engaged in Ukraine in his role as a board member for Burisma, the Ukranian natural gas company at the center of allegations regarding Joe Biden’s involvement in Ukraine policy during the Obama administration while his son was being paid by Burisma.
NDI did not respond to a Breitbart News inquiry about when Hunter Biden was removed from the organization’s chairman’s council. The WayBack Internet archive shows Biden was listed on NDI’s website in that position until at least August 2019, encompassing the period when Taylor led the organization’s delegation.
The NDI is not Taylor’s only seemingly conspicuous link. Breitbart News reported that Taylor has evidenced a close relationship with the Atlantic Council think tank, writing Ukraine policy pieces with the organization’s director and analysis articles published by the Council. The Atlantic Council is funded by and works in partnership with Burisma.
