As you’ve no doubt heard, it’s been announced that Britney Griner has been released from custody in Russia.
Here’s what the @POTUS account had to say about it:
Moments ago I spoke to Brittney Griner.
She is safe.
She is on a plane.
She is on her way home. pic.twitter.com/FmHgfzrcDT— President Biden (@POTUS) December 8, 2022
Biden spoke about the release of Griner this morning, and he did mention others who are being held in Russia as well:
You might have noticed that Biden’s tweet and remarks avoided any mention of this part of the story:
MORE: To secure Griner’s return, Biden has freed arms dealer Viktor Bout. Bout gained infamy as the “Merchant of Death” & was found guilty for conspiring to sell AK-47’s that would’ve been used to kill DEA agents.
— Steven Portnoy (@stevenportnoy) December 8, 2022
The Biden White House definitely doesn’t want to talk about something and it didn’t go unnoticed:
Griner, 32, was exchanged in a one-to-one swap for Viktor Bout, a notorious arms dealer, according to a statement from Russia’s foreign ministry. The president didn’t mention Bout’s name in his remarks. @POTUS @BloombergTV
— Michael A. Smith (@MikeSmithMedia) December 8, 2022
Only gave up a Russian Arms dealer, but he didn’t mention that
— Michael Chack (@chackattack1812) December 8, 2022
Russia got the better deal, he didn't mention they traded a Russian arms dealer for her
— Mana Rush (@mana_rush) December 8, 2022
Biden didn’t mention that in his remarks at the White House today, and he didn’t take questions — probably to avoid the subject of who was released in return for Griner and those who remain held in Russia:
The Biden admin freed a Russian arms dealer known as the “Merchant of Death” in exchange for WNBA player Brittney Griner — and left Paul Whelan behind. After remarks on the swap, Biden ignored a question about when he’d bring the former U.S. Marine home.https://t.co/RlGpvQc1YM
— Spencer Brown (@itsSpencerBrown) December 8, 2022
Gee, it’s no wonder Biden didn’t want to mention the other side of this particular coin:
In remarks before 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, President Joe Biden announced that his administration had negotiated a prisoner swap to free WNBA player Brittney Griner from a Russian penal colony in exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout who is also known as the “Merchant of Death.”
Bout was roughly 11 years into a 25 year U.S. prison sentence for his actions that included a conspiracy to kill Americans, provide material support to terrorists, and traffic anti-aircraft missiles. But now he’s free in the one-for-one prisoner exchange between the U.S. and Russia that apparently secured the safe return of Griner who was arrested, charged, and convicted in Russia for drug smuggling and possession after she brought vape cartridges containing cannabis oil into the country.
The Biden administration will be dodging questions about this particular aspect of the swap for quite a while, and for obvious reasons.
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