Trump again vows action on big tech over Biden story

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Donald Trump continued to pledge action against big tech Wednesday, claiming the firms have taken actions against him to a "new level" over their throttling of a story alleging corruption in the Biden family.

"They're suppressing it. They won't let the stories out," Trump said in a video recording he posted to his Twitter account. "Whether you like it or don't like it, they won't even let the stories go out."

Trump named Google, Twitter and Facebook, claiming the technology companies are "taking away your rights" in his message to supporters set to thematic music.

The story in question was published by the New York Post earlier this month. It has come under widespread scrutiny over dubious sourcing and was reportedly foisted at the last minute on two staffers whose sole contribution was being added to the byline after the original author refused to have his name attached to it.

Several reporters in the Post's newsroom were skeptical of the story, according to the New York Times, and at least one other reporter also refused to have their byline on it.

Gabrielle Fonrouge, one of two reporters who were eventually added to the story, only found out her name was on it after it was published, according to the Times. The other, Emma-Jo Morris, did not have a bylined piece run in the Post prior to its publication.

Based on information provided to the newspaper by Rudy Giuliani, one of Trump's closest allies, the article alleges that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden used his former office as vice president to enrich his son, Hunter Biden. Biden has denied the allegations.

The story claimed Hunter Biden had organized a meeting between a Ukrainian businessman who was a board member of a gas company he worked for, and the elder Biden. The claim was based on e-mails allegedly obtained from a hard drive.

The Post said email correspondence proves Vadym Pozharskyi met with Biden at his son's request in April 2015 while he was serving as vice president.

The newspaper also alleged it was given video of sex acts performed by Hunter Biden, also recovered from the "water damaged" MacBook Pro that was reportedly never recovered from a computer repair store in Biden's home state of Delaware.

It was handed over to federal authorities after the shop owner allegedly made a copy of its hard drive, which he gave to Giuliani’s lawyer, Robert Costello. It was Giuliani who handed over the information to the Post, a newspaper owned by another staunch Trump ally, media magnate Rupert Murdoch.

Trump previously alleged Twitter and Facebook are a "third arm" for Democrats after they prevented accounts from sharing the story.