US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has declassified a previously undisclosed intelligence report that she says points to a treasonous conspiracy; it has led Republican politicians to call for Democrats to be tried, reports BBC.
The declassified document is related to the 2016 US presidential election. At that time, several US security and intelligence agencies, including the CIA, came to the conclusion that Russia had tried to help Trump become president. In 2019, FBI published a nearly 500-page report on Russian attempts to influence the election result, and it is one of many reports from US government agencies about the issue. The report was also signed by current member of the Trump administration, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Now, intelligence and security officials appointed by current US President Donald Trump have concluded that the previous investigation and reports were inaccurate. Gabbard announced at the White House on the 23rd of July that the reports revealed “unprecedented levels of weaponization and politicization of intelligence information.” Democrats responded by suggesting that the White House is trying to divert attention from its controversial decision not to release the Jeffrey Epstein files. Epstein was convicted of sex crimes against minors and was also accused of human trafficking; he committed suicide by hanging himself in custody in 2019.
Democrat Senator Mark Warner said the Trump administration was ready to declassify anything except the Epstein documents. Senator Warner has been reminding people on social media almost daily that the sex offender’s client list needs to be made public.
A definitive timeline of the Trump administration’s plot to mislead, distract and deceive the American people from finding out the truth about the Epstein List. pic.twitter.com/ZdmXpDrBJP
— Mark Warner (@MarkWarner) July 24, 2025
Gabbard’s declassified report, dated the 18th of September, 2020, was prepared by the Republican Party’s Intelligence Committee. It was released on the 23rd of July, a day after Trump accused former US President Barack Obama of trying to link him to Russian services and undermine the 2016 presidential campaign. The current US president openly called for the imprisonment of Democrat candidate Hillary Clinton during his 2016 campaign, the Times reports, but later backed away from the idea.
In mid-July, Gabbard threatened to indict members of the Obama administration for the 2016 crimes, but did not provide details about the charges. The official statement said that after Trump defeated Clinton, the Obama administration and members of the national security agencies under him fabricated and politicized intelligence to lay the groundwork for what was effectively a years-long coup against President Trump.
The declassified report says the CIA failed to adhere to analytical standards
and used “one scant, unclear, and unverifiable fragment of a sentence from one of the substandard reports” to conclude that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin wanted Trump to win. However, the report also provides little evidence to disprove the prevailing view that Russia sought to influence the election. One of the authors of the declassified report is Kash Patel, whom Trump has now appointed as FBI director.
A few hours after Gabbard announced the declassification of the report, the Justice Department announced the creation of a task force to assess the evidence and plan next steps depending on what is revealed.
While Democrats consider the declassification of the report to be smokes and mirrors, the report brought to light has caused a storm of applause in the Republican camp. The Times writes that Fox News has called the news a “potential super scandal.” Meanwhile, North Carolina Senator Pat Harrigan said on the social network “X” that Watergate looks like an amateur effort against this background.
Makes Watergate look like amateur hour.
Obama’s intel officials ran a disinformation campaign against the American people to take down a sitting president—this is absolutely disgraceful. https://t.co/87RepihXTS
— Congressman Pat Harrigan (@RepPatHarrigan) July 18, 2025
Watergate was a political scandal in the 1970s that led to the impeachment and resignation of US President Richard Nixon in 1974.
White House spokesman Stephen Miller said on social media that Gabbard had shed light on the disturbing scope of the nefarious coup against the Republic. He added that the forces behind the coup attempt have done and will continue to do everything they can to hold on to their ill-gotten power. Miller concluded his remarks with the words “But WE are stronger.”
Other Republican senators have praised the Trump administration for its determination and tireless pursuit of justice, and there have been claims that
the Democrat-made materials have done more harm to the United States than all foreign influence agents combined.
Obama spokesman Patrick Rodenbush stressed in an official statement that nothing in the declassified information refutes the generally accepted conclusion that Russia sought to influence the 2016 election, but failed to directly interfere in the vote. US intelligence agencies released a report in January 2017 that concluded that Russia sought ways to sabotage Clinton’s chances and boost the vote for Trump. Officials at the time concluded that Russian activities included “troll farms” operating on social media and hacking Democrat’s email systems, however, the impact was likely limited and did not change the outcome of the election.
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