Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced that security clearances had been revoked for 37 current and former officials who she said “abused public trust by politicizing and manipulating” intelligence.
The group includes several figures tied to the Barack Obama-ordered assessment of Russian influence in the 2016 election, a report long criticized as biased and politically motivated, The New York Post reported.
An Office of the Director of National Intelligence memo confirmed the move, stating that the individuals had either politicized or weaponized intelligence, failed to protect classified information, or not followed basic tradecraft standards.
“The President has directed that, effective immediately, the security clearances of the following 37 individuals are revoked,” the Aug. 18 memo said, according to a copy obtained by The New York Post.
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“Their access to classified systems, facilities, materials, and information is to be terminated forthwith. Any contracts or employment with the U.S. Government by these 37 individuals is hereby terminated. Any credentials held by these individuals must be surrendered to the appropriate security officers,” the memo adds.
The list includes ex-Principal Deputy DNI Stephanie O’Sullivan and Vinh Nguyen, who both worked under Obama-era DNI James Clapper while his office produced the now-discredited 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment on Russia’s supposed support for Donald Trump.
Nguyen had been serving in the Trump administration as the National Security Agency’s first chief responsible artificial intelligence officer.
“Our Intelligence Community must be committed to upholding the values and principles enshrined in the US Constitution,” Gabbard said. “And maintain a laser-like focus on our mission of ensuring the safety, security and freedom of the American people.”
Last month, Gabbard began declassifying records about the crafting of the 2017 assessment, which she has called a “treasonous conspiracy” by senior Obama officials “to subvert President Trump’s 2016 victory.”
Those records show that Clapper, John Brennan, and James Comey drove the assessment to highlight Moscow’s role in the election and suggest support for Trump over Hillary Clinton.
Also losing clearance was Samantha Vinograd, who served in Biden’s Department of Homeland Security and on Obama’s National Security Council.
She had also signed a public letter during the 2016 campaign demanding that Trump disclose his business interests.
Andrew P. Miller, a former Obama NSC member who later served as Biden’s deputy assistant secretary of state for Israeli-Palestinian affairs, was also on the list.
Other names include Loren DeJonge Schulman, a former adviser to Susan Rice, and Beth Sanner, who once served as vice-chair of the National Intelligence Council.
Obama ordered the Russia assessment in December 2016, even after pre- and post-election reviews had already shown Russia did not affect the outcome of the vote.
At a Dec. 9, 2016, White House meeting, Obama directed officials to investigate “Russia Election Meddling,” according to declassified records.
Several of those stripped of clearance were also tied to the September 2019 statement that supported House Democrats’ first impeachment effort against Trump.
“Being entrusted with a security clearance is a privilege, not a right,” Gabbard said. “Those in the Intelligence Community who betray their oath to the Constitution and put their own interests ahead of the interests of the American people have broken the sacred trust they promised to uphold.”
The final intelligence product, which was supposed to be a factual assessment of Russian activities, also incorporated information from the discredited dossier compiled by former British spy Christopher Steele.
Brennan included the Steele claims despite warnings from veteran intelligence officers who urged him to keep the “substandard” material out of the final report.
Errors and politicization in that assessment helped trigger years of investigations that dogged Trump through much of his first term.
Since taking office, Gabbard has released a 44-page classified House Intelligence Committee report that undercut the Obama-era assessment.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe has also published a review describing the process as “chaotic,” “atypical,” and “markedly unconventional,” raising questions of political motive.
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