In a revealing interview published Sunday by the New York Post, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard shared a striking new perspective on Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential race — one that challenges the prevailing narrative.
Speaking with Miranda Devine on the upcoming “Pod Force One” podcast, set to release Wednesday, Gabbard asserted that Russia anticipated a Hillary Clinton victory and aimed to sow chaos regardless of the outcome.
“As we’ve seen in documents reviewed since the campaign, Russia believed Hillary Clinton would win — they felt it was inevitable,” Gabbard explained.
The Kremlin’s hacking of the Democratic National Committee’s emails is well-documented, with a July ODNI memo stating there is “supporting evidence” that the Russian government directed these cyberattacks on the DNC and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Yet, Gabbard posed a provocative question: If Russia’s goal was to boost Donald Trump’s chances, why did it wait until after the election to release damaging information on Clinton?
Highlighting a 2020 House Intelligence Committee report, Gabbard noted revelations that Russia may have held intelligence about Clinton’s use of “heavy tranquilizers” to manage “intensified psycho-emotional problems,” including “uncontrolled fits of anger, aggression, and cheerfulness.”
She challenged why such critical details were never publicly disclosed.
“If Russia truly sought to help Trump get elected, as the intelligence community’s January 2017 assessment claims with ‘high confidence,’ then Putin would have released the most damaging emails and information about Clinton before the election,” Gabbard told Devine.
This fresh angle invites a reexamination of the ‘Russigate’ saga — raising new questions about the timing, motives, and narratives that shaped one of the most contentious elections in recent history.
Regarding the House report, Gabbard claimed the crucial information “was intentionally withheld and not released because they assumed Hillary Clinton would win the election, planning instead to drop these documents days or weeks before her inauguration.”
She also revealed surprising new details uncovered through documents her office released in July. “Frankly, I was surprised that all of these documents still existed,” Gabbard told the New York Post.
Back in July, during a White House press briefing, Gabbard announced she had submitted referrals to the Department of Justice (DOJ) based on the findings from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI).