Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard declassified a Top Secret email from December 22, 2016, revealing internal disagreements among senior intelligence officials over the preparation of the January 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) on Russian activities in the 2016 Presidential election.
The ICA — ordered by then-President Barack Obama in the final weeks of his administration — concluded that Russian leadership directed an influence campaign to help President Donald Trump’s candidacy. Those findings became central to the years-long “Russiagate” controversy and were cited extensively in media coverage and political debates.
In an X post, Gabbard shared an exchange between then–DNI James Clapper and then–National Security Agency Director Adm. Michael Rogers. According to the declassified document, Clapper called the report a “team sport” and acknowledged the compressed schedule could require “compromise on our ‘normal modalities.'”
🚨Newly declassified Top Secret emails sent on December 22, 2016 complying with President Obama's order to create the manufactured January 2017 ICA about Russia expose how DNI James Clapper demanded the IC fall in line behind the Russia Hoax. Clapper admits that it was a "team… pic.twitter.com/fVHq9E1no7
— DNI Tulsi Gabbard (@DNIGabbard) August 13, 2025
In a separate message, Rogers raised concerns that National Security Agency (NSA) analysts lacked full access to the underlying intelligence and adequate time to review it. He stressed that if the NSA’s name was on the report, his agency should be able to verify its conclusions using the most sensitive evidence available.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Clapper and former CIA Director John Brennan have publicly denied allegations of wrongdoing over their handling of the Russia investigation. Trump and Gabbard have accused them of concealing or downplaying information that undermined the collusion narrative.
Gabbard said the document showed how dissenting views during the ICA’s drafting may have been suppressed or minimized.
“Read for yourself,” Gabbard challenged, directing followers to the full record posted by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
The newly released email adds to the body of evidence fueling criticism of how the ICA was assembled — a report that helped shape public perception of the incoming Trump administration and remains a flashpoint in debates over the conduct of U.S. intelligence agencies.