Tulsi Gabbard unleashes ‘Coup’ files targeting Obama-era officials with treason, but is it all a smokescreen to bury Epstein scandal?

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard on Friday, July 18, unleashed a barrage on posts X, accusing former Obama administration officials of politicizing intelligence ahead of the 2016 US election. She claims that the intelligence community’s assessment of Russian election interference was manipulated to falsely suggest that foreign cyber operations influenced Donald Trump’s victory.

“These documents detail a treasonous conspiracy by officials at the highest levels of the Obama White House,” Gabbard posted, adding that the effort was to “subvert the will of the American people.”

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She further stated she has handed over all related documents to the Department of Justice, calling for a full investigation.

New declassifications of an old allegation

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released declassified documents that revisit intelligence assessments made after the 2016 election. The documents, originally circulated within national security agencies, suggested that foreign actors, primarily Russia, did not alter vote counts or directly impact election results via cyber means.

Earlier, in one such Presidential Daily Brief from December 2016, intelligence officials reportedly assessed it was “highly unlikely” that Russian actors had succeeded in changing vote outcomes.

Despite these conclusions, a separate Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) released on January 6, 2017, indicated that Russia sought to help Trump win. That assessment became central to the narrative of Trump-Russia collusion and later led to investigations, including the Mueller probe.

The credibility of Muller Probe

The Mueller probe was launched in May 2017 under Special Counsel Robert Mueller to examine Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election, possible links between the Trump campaign and Russian operatives, and whether President Trump obstructed justice. The investigation concluded that Russia did interfere through hacking and propaganda but did not find sufficient evidence to charge Trump or his campaign with conspiracy.

Now, with newly declassified documents released by DNI Tulsi Gabbard, questions have resurfaced about the origins and motivations behind the probe, raising claims that the intelligence was politicized to justify a prolonged campaign to undermine Trump’s presidency.

Why Now? Epstein case receives little attention

The timing of Gabbard’s post and document release has also raised eyebrows among political observers. On July 17, the WSJ published a report detailing the involvement of President Donald Trump in a 2003 birthday letter that he allegedly signed in a leather-bound album for Jeffrey Epstein. However, he called it fake and threatened legal action.

With renewed interest in the matter, critics point out that Donald Trump has consistently sought to distance himself from the controversial case involving alleged ties between global elites and the now-deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Observers also note a sudden shift in both media and political discourse, steering attention back to long-standing Russia-related narratives and raising questions about whether this pivot is intended to divert focus from the unresolved Epstein saga.

Online commentators have begun asking: Is the revival of this 2016 controversy meant to bury or distract from Epstein-related revelations?

Accountability Promised, but Questions Linger

Gabbard, who was confirmed as Director of National Intelligence earlier this year under President Trump’s second term, said that her actions are not partisan. “This is about the integrity of our democratic republic,” she wrote.

While she has called for accountability, none of the individuals named, such as former CIA Director John Brennan, former DNI James Clapper, or former FBI Director James Comey, have publicly responded to the allegations as of publication.

The Department of Justice has not confirmed any formal investigations on the newly declassified documents.