Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard held a rare press briefing at the White House to discuss new allegations against Obama administration officials regarding intelligence handling of Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard addressed reporters at the White House on Wednesday, shortly after the release of a batch of documents accusing the Obama administration of misleading the public about intelligence findings related to Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
Gabbard made an uncommon appearance in the briefing room, indicating the White House’s intent to highlight these claims further. Her presence coincided with the release of a previously classified report from the House Intelligence Committee, originally drafted in 2017 and published in 2020.
“This report demonstrates that Putin withheld leaking compromising information on Hillary Clinton before the election, intending to release it afterward to weaken an anticipated Clinton presidency,” Gabbard stated during the briefing.
The report criticized the CIA for not adhering to standard analytic procedures, asserting that the conclusion about Putin’s actions favoring then-candidate Trump was based on minimal and unclear evidence. Gabbard emphasized the report’s implications for former President Obama, former CIA Director John Brennan, former FBI Director James Comey, and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.
However, critics quickly dismissed the report as inconsistent with both the intelligence community’s findings and a bipartisan 2020 Senate Intelligence Committee report. These sources concluded that Russia actively worked to interfere in the 2016 election with a preference for Trump.
Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.), the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, described the released document as partisan and insignificant. “Releasing this so-called report is just another reckless act by a Director of National Intelligence intent on pleasing Donald Trump, risking classified sources, betraying allies, and politicizing entrusted intelligence,” Warner stated.
During the briefing, Gabbard repeatedly mentioned Obama, suggesting that the 44th president may have been directly involved in misleading the public regarding the intelligence findings. “We have referred and will continue to refer these documents to the Department of Justice and the FBI to investigate their criminal implications,” Gabbard commented.
She asserted, “The evidence we have found and released points directly to President Obama leading the crafting of this intelligence assessment, supported by multiple pieces of evidence and intelligence.”
The previous day, Trump accused Obama of treason, prompting a rare response from Obama’s spokesperson, Patrick Rodenbush, who called Trump’s claims “outrageous,” highlighting them as distractions.
The report does not change established conclusions that Russia attempted to influence the 2016 election without manipulating votes. These facts were reaffirmed in a bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee report from 2020, then chaired by Senator Marco Rubio.
When questioned about potential legal consequences for Obama, Gabbard and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt avoided direct responses, deferring to the Department of Justice. Gabbard remarked, “I’m leaving the criminal charges to the DOJ. I’m not a lawyer,” while Leavitt stressed accountability for those responsible for wrongdoing.
Questions were also raised about relations with Rubio, a key ally of Trump. Leavitt sidestepped allegations questioning Rubio’s previous stance on Russia’s election interference.
In response to whether Gabbard’s actions might be political or meant to regain favor with Trump after recent criticism, Leavitt noted, “The only people questioning the director’s sincerity are those sowing distrust among the president’s Cabinet.”
Despite Gabbard’s frequent comments about ridding the intelligence community of politicization, her briefing incited questions about whether her disclosures themselves were politically motivated.
Addressing those concerns, Gabbard stated it was “disrespectful to the American people” to imply malicious intent, reiterating the importance of transparency in releasing the documents.
Gabbard summarized one of the significant findings from the release, citing that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s primary objective was to undermine confidence in the U.S. democratic process, rather than express a preference for a particular candidate.
According to The Hill, these developments add another layer of complexity to ongoing discussions and historical assessments of Russian interference in American electoral processes.