Gabbard claims ‘coordinated effort’ by intelligence community to advance narrative to impeach Trump

By Fox News · Fox News

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released newly declassified testimony that she alleges shows a "coordinated effort" by the intelligence community to "manufacture a conspiracy" used as the basis of President Donald Trump first impeachment. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence on Monday released two declassified transcripts from closed-door House Intelligence Committee hearings that Gabbard’s office says show former Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson advanced as credible a whistleblower complaint based on secondhand information from an individual who had previously worked with then-Vice President Joe Biden in Ukraine. Gabbard’s office argued that, based on this and other testimony, Atkinson’s actions "weaponize[d] the whistleblower process and exceed[ed] his statutory jurisdiction." Atkinson’s investigation helped trigger the first impeachment of Trump by advancing what he deemed a "credible" whistleblower complaint regarding a July 2019 phone call between the president and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Former Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson "did not follow standard IG procedures and relied upon politicized, manufactured narratives" while investigating the whistleblower claim that ultimately led to Trump’s 2019 impeachment, Gabbard’s office said Monday. GABBARD UNAWARE OF FBI PROBE INTO JOE KENT BEFORE RESIGNATION, OFFICIAL SAYS Gabbard, citing previously classified House testimony by Atkinson, said the former inspector general "aggressively advanced" his preliminary probe while relying on secondhand testimony and what she described as politicized witnesses. Gabbard’s office also charged that Atkinson "never conducted a formal or complete investigation." "In his own words, IC IG Atkinson recognizes that his conclusions were based on a ‘preliminary investigation,’ noting that ‘I haven’t done an investigation to determine whether they actually, in fact, took place … that all of t…