Director of Nationwide Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard launched a report Friday alleging Obama administration officers manipulated intelligence associated to Russian interference within the 2016 election.
Gabbard asserted in a press release that former officers engaged in a “treasonous conspiracy” and mentioned her workplace was turning over proof to the Justice Division for doable legal referrals.
“The data we’re releasing immediately clearly exhibits there was a treasonous conspiracy in 2016 dedicated by officers on the highest stage of our authorities,” Gabbard mentioned. “Their purpose was to subvert the need of the American individuals and enact what was basically a years-long coup with the target of attempting to usurp the President from fulfilling the mandate bestowed upon him by the American individuals.”
Friday’s memo cites officers resembling former Director of Nationwide Intelligence James Clapper, former CIA Director John Brennan and former FBI Director James Comey.
President Trump has for years claimed the investigation into Russian interference within the 2016 election and whether or not his marketing campaign colluded with Moscow was a “hoax,” concentrating on officers like Brennan and Comey with frequent assaults.
Trump in March signed a memo ordering the declassification of “all information associated to Crossfire Hurricane,” the identify given to the FBI’s investigation into Russian interference within the 2016 election.
The very intelligence companies that Gabbard now oversees have lengthy concluded that Russia sought to affect the 2016 election — an evaluation that was backed by different exterior entities.
That features a three-year bipartisan Senate investigation that concluded in a greater than 1,300 page report that Russia was aggressive in searching for to intrude with the election on Trump’s behalf, together with by launching an enormous social media marketing campaign.
Gabbard’s memo, in addition to one other 114 pages of related documents, primarily rests on claims there was no indication of a Russian effort to immediately manipulate the precise vote depend.
Nonetheless, that’s not at odds with the conclusion of the intelligence neighborhood or the Senate report, which decided there was “no proof that any votes have been modified or that any voting machines have been manipulated.” The Obama administration mentioned it had seen no proof that hackers tampered with the outcomes.
Gabbard’s launch was instantly panned by Intelligence Committee Democrats, who famous that it comes amid fractures throughout the Trump administration over how one can deal with scrutiny over the Jeffrey Epstein case.
“It’s a day that ends with ‘y’ and Donald Trump desperately desires to alter the topic, so Director Gabbard is rehashing decade-old false claims in regards to the Obama Administration. Few episodes in our nation’s historical past have been investigated as completely because the Intelligence Neighborhood’s warning in 2016 that Russia was interfering within the election,” Home Intelligence Committee rating member Jim Himes (D-Conn.) mentioned in a press release.
“Each authentic investigation, together with the bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee investigation, discovered no proof of politicization and endorsed the findings of the 2016 Intelligence Neighborhood Evaluation.”
Sen. Mark Warner (Va.), the highest Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, additionally criticized Gabbard.
“It appears DNI Gabbard is unaware that the years-long Russia investigation carried out by the Senate Intelligence Committee reaffirmed that ‘the Russian authorities directed intensive exercise towards U.S. election infrastructure’ forward of the 2016 election, and that it ‘used social media to conduct an info warfare marketing campaign’ with the intention to profit Donald Trump. This conclusion was supported on a unanimous foundation by each single Democrat and Republican on the committee,” he mentioned in a press release.
Additionally Friday, the Justice Division moved to launch some proof from the Epstein case, together with some grand jury testimony, beneath strain to launch extra details about a determine Trump used to socialize with.
The transfer from Gabbard comes not solely amid fallout from the Epstein saga however shortly after experiences that she had fallen out of favor with Trump over intelligence associated to Iran’s nuclear program.
Friday’s launch underscores how probing the origins of the Russia investigation has remained a fixation for the president practically a decade later. The memo additionally focuses on the Steele file, a set of salacious allegations about Trump’s ties to Russia, a few of which has been discredited.
Gabbard acquired reward from GOP figures for the report.
“DISMANTLING THE DEEP STATE!” Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) wrote on social platform X.
“The Russia hoax was a political hit job manufactured by Obama officers and weaponized by intel companies to take down President Trump. Accountability is lengthy overdue!”
Nonetheless, in Democratic circles, Gabbard has been accused — on this occasion in addition to others — of tailoring intelligence to go well with the wants of the administration.
Warner famous that Gabbard previously called on Trump to pardon leaker Edward Snowden, who launched hundreds of Nationwide Safety Company paperwork displaying the majority assortment of People’ communications knowledge.
“It’s sadly not stunning that DNI Gabbard, who promised to depoliticize the intelligence neighborhood, is as soon as once more weaponizing her place to amplify the president’s election conspiracy theories,” Warner mentioned.
“It’s appalling to listen to DNI Gabbard accuse her personal IC workforce of committing a ‘treasonous conspiracy’ when she was unwilling to label Edward Snowden a traitor.”
Up to date at 6:33 p.m. EDT