WASHINGTON (TNND) — The Trump administration has leveled serious accusations against former President Barack Obama, alleging his involvement in a “treasonous conspiracy” related to intelligence reports on Russian interference in the 2016 election. President Donald Trump has accused Obama of treason, following the declassification of documents by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
Gabbard released infographics and a declassified House Intelligence report from September 2020, claiming it reveals the Obama administration’s “egregious weaponization and politicization of intelligence.”
“I’m leaving the criminal charges to the Department of Justice, expressed intent and what followed afterwards can only be described as a year-long coup and a treasonous conspiracy against the American people,” Gabbard told reporters during the White House’s press briefing Wednesday.
The report suggests that the Obama administration manufactured the January 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment, which concluded that Russia attempted to meddle in the election and preferred Trump as the winner.
The leader of the gang was President Obama. It’s there. He’s guilty. They…this was treason, Trump said Tuesday.
An Obama spokesperson responded to the recent releases directly, something the former President has rarely done, and dismissed the allegations, calling them “bizarre” and “a weak attempt at distraction.”
The House report acknowledged that some intelligence work was rushed and criticized the assessment that Russian President Vladimir Putin preferred Trump, citing unreliable intelligence. However, it agreed with findings that Russia attempted cyber influence operations and sought to undermine faith in the elections. The report also found that Russian President Vladimir Putin held back on releasing damaging information on then-candidate Hillary Clinton, likely waiting until after the election that Russia thought she might win.
The Senate Intelligence Committee, in a bipartisan report released in 2020, also affirmed Russia’s attempts to meddle in the 2016 election. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, then a Republican senator from Florida, was part of that committee.
Gabbard said she has made criminal referrals to the Department of Justice over the declassified report and multiple Republicans on Capitol Hill have agreed that it would be appropriate to hold Obama “accountable.” But the other factor at play is what penalties the former president could face, considering the Supreme Court granted broad immunity to presidential acts. That determination was made thanks to a case involving Trump and January 6th. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked about the immunity on Wednesday and told reporters it’s now in the hands of the DOJ.
