Details Emerge from Declassified Email Concerning 2016 Election Intelligence
US Director of National Intelligence, Tarsi Gabbard, has unveiled a previously classified email from 2016. This email sheds light on efforts by former DNI director James Clapper to downplay warnings regarding politically motivated actions aimed at interfering in the 2016 presidential election, specifically concerning the purported connection between President Donald Trump and Russian interference.
The email involved Mike Rogers, who was then the Director of the National Security Agency (NSA), along with former FBI Director James Comey and John Brennan. In it, Rogers voiced significant concerns about the intelligence community’s evaluation of alleged Russian meddling in the election. He underscored that his team didn’t have adequate access to the underlying intelligence and lacked the time to conduct a comprehensive assessment.
Just before the initial draft of the Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) was to be presented to the intelligence leaders, Clapper stated that any request for more time was non-negotiable.
“We may have to compromise on the ‘normal’ modality, as we need to proceed under a compressed schedule,” Clapper commented.
Clapper urged those involved to rally around unverified reports, suggesting that they were, in a sense, stuck with the narrative they had adopted.
“That’s our story, and we’re stuck with it,” Clapper asserted, implying that this perspective had been embraced by others as well. He added, “This is one of the projects that must be a team sport.”
In a statement from Gabbard’s office, they remarked on the continuous deception surrounding the allegations of a Russian hoax, claiming that Clapper’s comments support the notion that they had been directed to create intelligence that served political agendas.
“The main figures behind the Russian hoax have deceived the American public for years by framing fabricated politicized ratings as reliable intelligence,” they stated. “Clapper’s own words affirm that manufacturing intelligence was treated as ‘team sports.’
This release follows Gabbard’s recent disclosure of over a hundred documents that indicate involvement from Obama-era officials in efforts to misrepresent Trump’s ties to Russia during the election period.
Trump has previously reacted to these allegations on social media, stating that they were unfounded and politically motivated, characterizing them as schemes aimed at discrediting him.
“Obama himself was responsible for producing Russian hoaxes. Crooked Hillary, sleepy Joe, and others participated in this century’s crimes! Evidence that can’t be contested,” Trump commented.
On Thursday, the House Intelligence Committee expressed its intent to evaluate the emerging findings further.
“The Russian hoax will go down in history as one of the most corrupt moments our nation has faced. It has divided the country, and the bias persists to this day,” Gabbard continued, emphasizing transparency as essential for the public.
