WASHINGTON — The Department of Justice has received a criminal referral from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who is alleging that senior officials in the Obama administration engaged in a “treasonous conspiracy” to undermine Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential victory.
Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman and 2020 presidential candidate, released over 100 pages of documents Friday, asserting that the Obama-era intelligence community manipulated assessments of Russian election interference to suggest a more direct threat than what was initially concluded. The documents, according to Gabbard, show efforts to suppress findings that indicated no cyberattacks altered the outcome of the election.
“Their goal was to usurp President Trump and subvert the will of the American people,” Gabbard posted on X. “No matter how powerful, every person involved in this conspiracy must be investigated and prosecuted. The integrity of our democratic republic depends on it.”
Among the documents are early drafts from intelligence officials dated December 7, 2016, stating there was “no evidence of cyber manipulation of election infrastructure intended to alter results.” However, these assessments were reportedly excluded from the Presidential Daily Brief following objections from the FBI, which cited “new guidance.”
Two days later, then-President Obama met with top national security officials — including CIA Director John Brennan, FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper — instructing them to prepare a revised assessment of Russian interference. That assessment later concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin had ordered an influence campaign to help Trump and hurt Hillary Clinton.
Part of that conclusion relied on information from the now-infamous Steele dossier, an opposition research document funded by the Clinton campaign, which included unverified allegations about Trump’s alleged ties to Russia.
Gabbard claims the Obama administration’s actions amounted to a deliberate attempt to delegitimize Trump’s presidency through an intelligence-fueled narrative of collusion — a move she described as “a years-long coup.”
Following Gabbard’s public disclosure, former President Trump amplified the allegations on Truth Social, calling the situation “the crime of the century” and accusing Obama, Clinton, and President Biden of being “a major threat to our country.” He also reposted a video mocking Democratic leaders’ calls for accountability, ending with an AI-generated clip of Obama being arrested in the Oval Office to the tune of “YMCA.”
While Gabbard and Trump supporters view the documents as evidence of a conspiracy, others remain skeptical. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, downplayed the release, pointing instead to the bipartisan Senate report from 2020. That report concluded that Russia conducted a broad influence campaign to sway public opinion and disrupt the electoral process — primarily to benefit Trump.
Still, Gabbard and her allies believe the actions of Obama-era officials could potentially constitute a violation of federal law, including conspiracy against rights — a charge that carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison and has no statute of limitations.
The Justice Department has not publicly commented on the referral.
