Things just got way more intense in Washington.
On Friday, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard went full throttle, accusing top officials from the Obama administration of being part of a “treasonous conspiracy” during the 2016 election. Her explosive claim? That people like James Clapper, John Brennan, and James Comey deliberately “manipulated and withheld” key intelligence on Russian interference, and now she wants the Justice Department to prosecute them.
In a fiery public statement, Gabbard promised she would hand over all the documents connected to this so-called treasonous conspiracy to the DOJ, declaring that the American people, and former President Trump, deserve accountability. “No matter how powerful, every person involved in this conspiracy must be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, to ensure nothing like this ever happens again,” she said.
The Department of Justice, when asked about Gabbard’s statement, chose not to comment. Meanwhile, none of the former officials named, Clapper, Brennan, or Comey, had anything to say immediately either, though Comey did decline to comment through his team.
This isn’t the first time the Trump administration has gone after those it considers political enemies. Trump has stripped security clearances from multiple officials tied to the Obama and Biden eras and has repeatedly slammed intelligence heads for pushing what he calls a “corrupt and vicious witch hunt” during the Russia probe. Most notably, Trump once even ordered an investigation into his own former cybersecurity director, Christopher Krebs, who contradicted his narrative on the 2020 election.
According to Gabbard’s report, the intelligence community had determined that foreign adversaries, namely Russia, did not use cyberattacks to change the actual outcome of the 2016 election. She seems to suggest that this was deliberately downplayed or hidden to keep a certain political narrative alive, thus justifying ongoing probes and media coverage.
But her opponents are not buying it. Democratic Rep. Jim Himes slammed Gabbard’s remarks in his own statement, accusing her of pushing “decade-old false claims” just to change the narrative. “Baseless accusations of treason are unfortunately par for the course for this Director of National Intelligence,” he said. “But that doesn’t make them any less damaging and unacceptable.” Himes doubled down, pointing out that intelligence officials in 2016 took an oath to the Constitution, not to Trump.
Himes also brought up the 2020 Senate Intelligence Committee report, which was led by Republicans and is considered the most comprehensive public investigation into Russian election interference. That report concluded that Russia aggressively interfered in the 2016 election. While the committee found the Trump campaign’s contacts with Russian operatives to be a “grave” counterintelligence concern, they didn’t find enough to conclude outright collusion.
Interestingly, the bipartisan report was backed by now–Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was acting chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee at the time. The report added legitimacy to claims that Russia meddled in U.S. elections, even if it didn’t directly implicate Trump in orchestrating it.
Adding fuel to the fire, a recent CIA review, commissioned by then-CIA Director John Ratcliffe, questioned the strength of the intelligence that led to the conclusion that Russia favored Trump in 2016. Still, it didn’t dispute the overall assessment that Moscow tried to influence the vote.
For context, even shortly after the 2016 election, Obama-era officials had stated publicly that there was no evidence showing vote totals were altered by outside actors. Despite that, recounts were filed by third-party candidates, and lawyers like Marc Elias, who represented Hillary Clinton’s campaign, confirmed that there was no actionable proof of hacking or vote tampering.
So now, with Gabbard’s new move, the old war over the 2016 election narrative has been reignited. Whether this effort leads to actual prosecutions or is simply another headline in the Trump-era playbook remains to be seen. But one thing is clear, accusations of a treasonous conspiracy aren’t going away quietly. And as always in D.C., the louder the charge, the deeper the political divide.
Leo Cruz brings sharp insights into the world of politics, offering balanced reporting and analysis on the latest policies, elections, and global political events. With years of experience covering campaigns and interviewing world leaders, Leo ensures readers are always informed and engaged.
