Gabbard’s Declassified Evidence Points to Obama’s Alleged Plot to Delegitimize Trump’s 2016 Victory
In a stunning revelation that has sent shockwaves through Washington, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has declassified documents that allege former President Barack Obama and his administration orchestrated a deliberate campaign to undermine President Donald Trump’s 2016 election victory. Gabbard’s findings, detailed in a declassified 2020 House Intelligence Committee report, suggest a concerted effort to subvert the democratic will of the American people, with implications that dwarf the Watergate scandal in scope and severity. This article explores Gabbard’s work in uncovering this alleged conspiracy and examines the broader context of Obama’s actions as presented in the declassified evidence.
Gabbard’s Role in Uncovering the Alleged Conspiracy
As Director of National Intelligence under President Trump’s second administration, Tulsi Gabbard has revealed key intel in what she describes as a “years-long coup” to delegitimize Trump’s presidency. On July 18, Gabbard released a declassified oversight majority staff report from September 2020, produced in coordination with House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rick Crawford. The report details how Obama and senior officials, including former CIA Director John Brennan, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and former FBI Director James Comey, allegedly manipulated intelligence to falsely claim Russian interference favored Trump in the 2016 election.
Gabbard’s findings are unequivocal: the Obama administration knowingly produced a January 2017 intelligence community assessment (ICA) that promoted a “contrived narrative” of Russian support for Trump, despite evidence to the contrary. The report accuses Obama’s team of manufacturing findings from dubious sources, suppressing credible intelligence, and violating traditional intelligence community standards. Gabbard emphasized that this was not a partisan issue but a matter of preserving the integrity of America’s democratic republic. “The American people deserve the truth,” she stated during a press briefing. “They deserve accountability and justice.”
The declassified documents reveal that the ICA, ordered directly by Obama, relied on the discredited Steele dossier—a politically motivated document—and ignored intelligence indicating Russia anticipated a Hillary Clinton victory. For instance, the report notes that Russian President Vladimir Putin withheld compromising material on Clinton, planning to use it to weaken an expected Clinton presidency. Gabbard highlighted that the ICA’s claim of Putin’s “clear preference” for Trump was unsupported by any direct evidence, with senior CIA officers reportedly objecting to its publication due to substandard sources.
Gabbard’s work extends beyond this report. On July 11, 2025, she released ODNI records, followed by Senator Chuck Grassley’s release of the “Clinton Annex” on July 14, 2025, an appendix to the Department of Justice’s 2018 Inspector General report. These documents collectively confirm the politicization of intelligence to undermine Trump’s legitimacy, implicating Obama and his national security team in a coordinated effort to sow discord and launch a prolonged attack on Trump’s presidency.
Obama’s Alleged Role in the Conspiracy
The declassified evidence points to former President Obama as the architect of the scheme. According to the House Intelligence Committee report, Obama personally directed the creation of the January 2017 ICA, which was crafted by a small team of five analysts under unusual directives from senior political appointees, particularly John Brennan. The report alleges that Obama’s administration suppressed intelligence showing no Russian intent to elect Trump and instead promoted a false narrative to discredit Trump before his inauguration. Gabbard stated as this morning’s press conference that she is referring the criminal nature of the scheme to the Department of Justice.
Key findings include:
- 1) Suppression of Contradictory Evidence: The ICA omitted reliable intelligence that Russian officials were preparing for a Clinton victory and had no intent to influence the election outcome in Trump’s favor.
- 2) Use of the Steele Dossier: Despite public denials, the dossier was incorporated into the ICA’s main text and a two-page annex, even though Brennan knew it was unverified and discredited.
- 3) Unusual Directives: On December 9, 2016, following a National Security Council meeting, Obama’s team tasked the intelligence community with creating the ICA, bypassing standard procedures and relying on substandard reporting.
- 4) Media Collusion: The Obama administration allegedly worked with media outlets to propagate the Russia hoax, leading to years of false narratives that smeared Trump and his associates, including Donald Trump Jr.
Gabbard and the White House assert that these actions constitute a “treasonous conspiracy” to subvert the will of the American people, who elected Trump in November 2016. The report suggests Obama’s intent was to delegitimize Trump’s presidency, launching a “years-long coup” that consumed political capital, fueled impeachments, and divided the nation. When questioned about potential criminal implications, Gabbard referred the matter to the Department of Justice and FBI, stating, “The evidence directly points to President Obama leading the manufacturing of this intelligence assessment.”
A Scandal Beyond Watergate
The allegations presented by Gabbard dwarf the Watergate scandal, which involved a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters and subsequent cover-up by the Nixon administration. Cultural commentators including author Eric Metaxas stated this is the biggest scandal in US History, far surpassing Watergate. While Watergate was a localized incident of political espionage, the Obama administration’s alleged actions strike at the heart of democratic integrity. By manipulating intelligence to undermine a duly elected president, Obama and his team are accused of orchestrating a systemic assault on the democratic process, with far-reaching consequences for public trust in institutions.
The White House press briefing underscored the scale of the scandal, noting that it “did grave material harm to our republic.” The Russia hoax, perpetuated by Democrat operatives and amplified by media outlets like The New York Times and The Washington Post, led to Pulitzer Prizes for reporting now deemed fraudulent. The briefing called for these awards to be stripped, arguing that propagating disinformation is not journalism but political activism.
Trump’s Response and Broader Achievements
President Trump, now six months into his second term as of July 2025, has hailed Gabbard’s revelations as vindication. The declassified documents confirm his long-standing claims that the Russia collusion narrative was a “massive fraud” designed to sabotage his presidency. The White House emphasized that the hoax consumed resources, smeared allies, and distracted from governance during Trump’s first term.
BGabbard’s revelations have sparked intense debate, with critics like Obama’s spokesperson arguing that the documents do not negate Russia’s attempts to influence the 2016 election. Gabbard countered that such claims deflect from the administration’s culpability, emphasizing that Russia’s actions aimed to sow discord, not support Trump. She urged the media and public to review the nearly 200 pages of declassified evidence to understand the truth.
The White House and Gabbard have called for accountability, with Trump demanding a thorough investigation into those who perpetuated the hoax, including Obama, Brennan, Clapper, Comey, and media figures. The administration argues that the scandal’s architects must face justice to restore faith in democratic institutions.
What’s Next
Tulsi Gabbard’s declassification of documents alleging a conspiracy by Barack Obama and his administration to undermine Donald Trump’s 2016 election victory represents a seismic moment in American politics. Described as a scandal surpassing Watergate, the revelations challenge the integrity of the intelligence community and the media’s role in amplifying false narratives. Gabbard’s work as Director of National Intelligence has brought transparency to a dark chapter in U.S. history, while Obama’s alleged actions raise profound questions about the misuse of power and potential legal ramifications referred to the DOJ. As the nation grapples with these findings, the call for accountability grows louder, with the potential to reshape public trust in government for years to come.
