Gabbard Discusses Potential Charges Against Obama
On Wednesday, National Intelligence Director Tarshi Gabbard announced he was bringing former President Barack Obama into a conversation about potential criminal charges with the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Gabbard revealed that a recently declassified file contains what he described as “overwhelming evidence” suggesting that Obama and his national security team manipulated intelligence following the 2016 election. During a White House press briefing, Unherd Washington correspondent Emily Jashinsky inquired about whether Gabbard was contemplating criminal charges involving Obama.
“We are continuing to forward all relevant documents to the Department of Justice and the FBI to examine any criminal implications of these findings,” Gabbard stated.
When Jashinsky pressed for clarification, asking specifically about Obama, Gabbard simply affirmed, “The right thing.” He elaborated, “…the evidence we’ve collected, which points directly to President Obama leading the creation of this information assessment, is substantial. Multiple elements of evidence and intelligence support this claim.”
In a recent statement, Trump urged the DOJ to investigate Obama further, criticizing him for what Gabbard claimed during a press conference.
In response, Obama’s spokesperson, Patrick Rodenbush, commented on the allegations put forth by the Trump administration. “In the spirit of respect for the presidency, we typically refrain from dignifying the continued flow of misinformation from this White House. However, these claims are egregious enough to warrant a response. They are absurd and merely serve as weak diversions,” Rodenbush said.
He went on to emphasize that the documents issued last week do not alter the widely accepted conclusion that Russia attempted to influence the 2016 presidential election but ultimately did not succeed in swaying the vote. He noted that this was corroborated in a 2020 bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee report led by former chairman Marco Rubio.
The file Gabbard released purportedly indicates that there is no evidence to support the assertion that Trump acted as a Russian asset, nor does it suggest that Russia intended to manipulate elections through cyber means or direct interference with vote counts.
