The Intelligence Coup: How Obama Sparked the Russia Hoax to Cripple Trump’s Presidency
The Intelligence Coup: How Obama Sparked the Russia Hoax to Cripple Trump’s Presidency
By Jim Reynolds | www.reynolds.com
Executive Summary
In the waning days of the Obama presidency, the outgoing administration weaponized the intelligence community to delegitimize President-elect Trump. What followed wasn’t a defensive response to foreign interference—it was a premeditated campaign to undermine the incoming president. This is the true origin story of the RussiaGate Hoax—and why it matters more than ever.
Introduction: The Premeditated Sabotage of a Presidency
In December 2016, weeks after Donald Trump’s upset election, outgoing President Barack Obama convened a closed-door meeting with his top intelligence and national security officials. The mission? Create a new intelligence report—a rushed "assessment"—that would reverse the standing consensus within the intelligence community: that Russia’s influence campaign had little effect on the outcome of the 2016 election.
This was not a neutral intelligence product. It was a political weapon—crafted not by the full IC, but by a handpicked clique, under Obama’s direction, determined to delegitimize Trump before he even took office.
What followed was an orchestrated disinformation campaign—not by Moscow, but from Washington. The now-infamous Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) became the blueprint for years of chaos: surveillance of Trump associates, the takedown of Michael Flynn, the sidelining of Jeff Sessions, and a presidency paralyzed by a fabricated scandal.
This wasn’t an accident. It was a coup in slow motion.
Part 1: The Truth Obama Rejected
In late 2016, senior analysts across the intelligence community reviewed Russia’s election meddling efforts. Their shared judgment was clear: Russia had tried to sow discord, but there was no evidence that votes were changed or that the outcome was influenced in any meaningful way.
Obama didn’t like that conclusion.
So, on December 9, 2016, he directed DNI James Clapper and CIA Director John Brennan to produce a new assessment. The ICA was released just four weeks later—on January 6, 2017—an astonishingly short timeline for a major national intelligence product.
Only three of 17 intelligence agencies participated: CIA, FBI, and NSA. The others—including those with the most technical cybersecurity and election expertise—were excluded.
Part 2: The Dossier Infiltrates the ICA
The CIA-led team—under Brennan’s guidance—incorporated the infamous Steele Dossier, a Clinton-funded opposition research document filled with unverified and salacious allegations about Trump.
This was the moment of institutional collapse:
Career intelligence officers strongly objected, warning that including the dossier would irreparably damage the assessment’s credibility.
Brennan insisted the material be appended, albeit labeled as an “Annex”—a move that subtly legitimized the dossier.
The FBI used the same document to justify secret FISA surveillance against Trump campaign aide Carter Page, even as internal memos acknowledged its unverifiable content.
Barack Obama was fully briefed on the existence and nature of the dossier. He allowed it to be used anyway.
Without the Steele Dossier, there would have been no ‘convincing’ Intelligence Community Assessment. Obama’s approval of its inclusion made him directly responsible for the RussiaGate hoax that consumed the nation.
Part 3: A Rush Job with a Political Agenda
According to a declassified CIA review released by Rep. Tulsi Gabbard in July 2025 (link to document), the ICA:
Was personally directed by Obama.
Was produced by a small, ideologically aligned team, bypassing normal IC review.
Excluded contrary views, particularly dissenting opinions from veteran analysts who warned the ICA’s “high confidence” in Russia’s pro-Trump intent was unjustified.
Why the rush? Because time was running out. Trump’s inauguration loomed. The narrative had to be set in stone—before he could take the oath.
Part 4: The Consequences Were Devastating
Once released, the ICA triggered a chain reaction:
Michael Flynn was ousted in less than a month.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions was sidelined—leaving DOJ under hostile internal control.
Special Counsel Robert Mueller was appointed, launching a two-year investigation largely based on Steele’s now-debunked dossier.
This was the objective all along: hamstring Trump’s presidency from Day One.
Part 5: The Real Election Interference
What Obama and his inner circle executed in late 2016 was domestic election interference.
They used national security tools designed to defend the republic to undermine the outcome of a democratic election. They betrayed their constitutional oath to ensure their preferred ideological outcome.
This wasn’t national security. It was revenge.
Conclusion: There Must Be Accountability
This is not just historical reflection—it is an urgent call to action.
When the intelligence community can be hijacked by an outgoing president to cripple an incoming one, democracy itself is in peril. There must be accountability—not only for Brennan, Clapper, and Comey—but for Barack Obama himself.
Their manipulation of intelligence was not just unethical—it was a subversion of the peaceful transfer of power. If it goes unpunished, it will be repeated.
If you want to understand Russiagate, forget the headlines. Start here—with the coup that began in a briefing room and ended in three years of paralysis.