WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Justice said on Wednesday it was forming a strike force to assess recent claims made by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard about “alleged weaponization of the U.S. intelligence community.”

Why It’s Important

U.S. President Donald Trump has leaped on comments from Gabbard on Friday in which she threatened to refer Obama administration officials to the Justice Department for prosecution over an intelligence assessment of Russian interference.

Republican Trump accused former President Barack Obama of treason on Tuesday, alleging, without providing evidence, that the Democrat led an effort to falsely tie him to Russia and undermine his 2016 presidential campaign.

A spokesperson for Obama denounced Trump’s claims, saying, “These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction.”

Key Quotes

“This Department takes alleged weaponization of the intelligence community with the utmost seriousness,” the Justice Department said in a statement.

“The Department of Justice announced the formation of a Strike Force to assess the evidence publicized by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and investigate potential next legal steps which might stem from DNI Gabbard’s disclosures.”

Context

Gabbard declassified documents and said the information she was releasing showed a “treasonous conspiracy” in 2016 by top Obama officials to undermine Trump, claims that Democrats called false and politically motivated.

An assessment by the U.S. intelligence community published in January 2017 concluded that Russia, using social media disinformation, hacking, and Russian bot farms, sought to damage Democrat Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and bolster Trump, who won the 2016 election.

The assessment determined the actual impact was likely limited and showed no evidence that Moscow’s efforts actually changed voting outcomes. Russia has denied it attempted to interfere in U.S. elections.

—

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Leslie Adler and Rod Nickel)