Bolton Critiques Gabbard’s Claims on Intelligence Reports

John Bolton, the former national security adviser who often critiques President Trump, dismissed the assertions made by Tulsi Gabbard regarding the National Intelligence Agency (DNI) director. He suggested she “imagined evidence that did not exist.”

Bolton emphasized, “She connects various things that aren’t really tied together. She exaggerates what the Congressional report actually stated.” During a recent appearance on NewsNation, he noted, “When someone delves deeply into it, the arguments tend to fall apart quickly, but as a strategy for her campaign, it seems to have worked fairly well.”

Bolton also remarked on the Jeffrey Epstein case, indicating that Gabbard’s actions might not distract attention from its implications. He stated, “There’s certainly no justification for the Department of Justice to initiate a criminal investigation.”

On Wednesday, Gabbard released a report from the 2020 House Intelligence Election Committee that questioned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s motivations during the 2016 presidential election and his support for Trump.

The report criticized the CIA for not adhering to proper analytical standards, arguing that Putin’s actions were based on “a scarce, unclear, unverified piece of information from a substandard report.”

Gabbard contended that the report revealed “the most egregious weaponization and politicization of intelligence in American history.”

However, many intelligence assessments have indicated that Russia attempted to meddle in the presidential race and that Putin favored Trump.

Recently, Gabbard accused senior officials from the Obama administration of manipulating data regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Trump claimed on Tuesday that Obama had committed treason and should face investigation by the DOJ. In response, Gabbard referred her findings to the department.

Despite these developments, Bolton pointed out on Friday that Gabbard’s findings had not uncovered new insights about the 2016 election. He cautioned against pursuing criminal investigations, highlighting that previous reports had already addressed how the Obama administration managed certain assessments.

He concluded, “But there’s nothing substantial to warrant a legal criminal investigation,” as he spoke with guest host Chris Schiritzer.