Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released a trove of declassified documents on Monday that she claims prove a coordinated effort within the Intelligence Community to manufacture the conspiracy used to impeach President Donald Trump in 2019.
The documents focus heavily on the actions of former IC Inspector General Michael Atkinson. According to the release, Atkinson bypassed standard procedures during his 14-day preliminary investigation into the President’s July 2019 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The records suggest Atkinson relied almost exclusively on a “whistleblower” and a witness who co-authored the 2017 Russia Hoax Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA), rather than firsthand evidence.
“Deep state actors within the Intelligence Community concocted a false narrative that was used by Congress to usurp the will of the American people,” DNI Gabbard said in a statement accompanying the release. “Inspector General Atkinson failed to uphold his responsibility to the American people, putting political motivations over the truth.”
The declassified materials include investigative notes and transcripts from Atkinson’s closed-door testimony before the House Intelligence Committee.
READ: Gabbard Issues Criminal Referrals For Two Officials Involved In First Trump Impeachment
These transcripts were reportedly withheld from the House Judiciary Committee during the 2020 impeachment trial and remained locked in a safe until a recent vote by House Intelligence Chairman Rick Crawford led to their release on Tuesday.
Key findings in the documents highlight that the whistleblower admitted in initial filings to having no direct knowledge of the President’s communications. One key witness, identified as “Witness 2,” admitted to investigators that they had to “read between the lines” to find evidence of a quid pro quo and only felt the narrative became clear “in hindsight.”
Additionally, the whistleblower’s own supervisor reportedly told investigators they “did not like how the [Whistleblower] handled the filing of the report.”
The release also links the investigation to the 2017 Russia investigation. Witness 2 is identified as a co-author of the 2017 ICA and a former colleague of Peter Strzok. During interviews, this witness reportedly expressed daily disappointment with the administration’s policy decisions.
Furthermore, the documents confirm the whistleblower eventually admitted to withholding information from the Inspector General’s team.
Specifically, the whistleblower later acknowledged speaking with Democratic staff on the House Intelligence Committee before filing the official complaint, a detail they initially failed to disclose during the 14-day investigative window.
Gabbard’s office also alleges that Atkinson “weaponized” the process by ignoring Department of Justice guidance.
According to the files, the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel determined the complaint did not meet the legal definition of an “urgent concern” because it did not involve intelligence activities under the DNI’s authority. Despite this, Atkinson moved forward to notify Congress, a move Gabbard characterizes as exceeding his statutory jurisdiction.
The documents further reveal that the IC OIG updated its whistleblower forms during this period to remove the requirement for firsthand knowledge, a change that coincided with the processing of this specific complaint.
“Exposing these tactics furthers the critical cause of transparency and accountability,” Gabbard stated, “and will help prevent future abuse of power.”
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