Former President Barack Obama has issued a rare public response to accusations that his administration manipulated intelligence assessments on Russian interference in the 2016 election, calling the claims “bizarre” and “a weak attempt at distraction.”
The statement, delivered Tuesday by Obama spokesperson Patrick Rodenbush, followed reports that the Department of Justice received a criminal referral from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. The referral concerns the 2017 intelligence assessment that concluded Moscow sought to damage then-Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and bolster Donald Trump in the presidential race.
“Out of respect for the office of the presidency, our office does not normally dignify the constant nonsense and misinformation flowing out of this White House with a response,” Rodenbush said. “But these claims are outrageous enough to merit one. These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction.”
Gabbard, along with CIA Director John Ratcliffe, has alleged that Obama-era intelligence leaders manipulated assessments to undermine Trump during his first term.
Trump himself has escalated the rhetoric, labeling Obama the “ringleader” of an effort that also allegedly involved Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, former FBI Director James Comey, and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. “They tried to rig an election, and then they got caught,” Trump said.
Rodenbush rejected the premise outright, insisting the new document referenced by Gabbard does not contradict the core findings of the 2017 assessment.
“Nothing in the document issued last week undercuts the widely accepted conclusion that Russia worked to influence the 2016 presidential election but did not successfully manipulate any votes,” he said, pointing to a 2020 bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee report led by then-Chairman Marco Rubio that reaffirmed those conclusions.
Former CIA Director John Brennan, one of the officials accused by name, also dismissed the allegations, calling them “specious” and “quite dangerous” in an interview with MSNBC.
The DOJ has not disclosed how it plans to proceed with Gabbard’s referral, leaving open the question of whether a formal investigation will follow.