By John Q. Hosedrinker 
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s accusations regarding a “hoax” surrounding the Trump-Russia scandal have sparked debate. While conservatives and Republicans have embraced Gabbard’s claims, independent analyses refute them, highlighting the scandal’s legitimacy. Despite being given an opportunity to support her claims, Gabbard presented no “irrefutable” evidence on Fox News, instead citing a National Security Council meeting that had already been discussed and scrutinized. Her unsupported allegations are based on a misinterpretation of a previously known event, leading to the conclusion that her claims are baseless.
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Pressed for evidence on her conspiracy theories, Gabbard falls embarrassingly short
The current media landscape seems increasingly willing to give a platform to outlandish claims, particularly those that rehash old conspiracy theories. The problem? Too often, those making the claims are not asked to provide any real evidence to back them up. It’s a dangerous game, allowing individuals to simply “spout off BS” without being challenged, and it’s exactly the scenario where Tulsi Gabbard finds herself.
Gabbard, like many others drawn to conspiracy theories, has been promoting ideas that have been thoroughly debunked. The focus on these old allegations is, without a doubt, an attempt at distraction, diverting attention from more pressing matters. Let’s be clear: the Russia investigation was not a “hoax.” There is no credible evidence that Barack Obama committed “treason” or orchestrated a plot against Donald Trump. These accusations directly contradict years of intelligence findings and are politically motivated. Remember, the FBI’s investigation into Hillary Clinton was publicly announced right before the election while the Russia investigation was kept under wraps. If there was a conspiracy against Trump, wouldn’t the timing have been the opposite?
The Mueller investigation, contrary to claims, did not exonerate Trump. The phrase “no collusion” does not appear in the Mueller report. Both the Mueller probe and a GOP-led senate panel found that Russia engaged in “information warfare” and attempted to interfere in the 2016 election to benefit the Trump campaign, with the intention of damaging Clinton’s campaign. The facts are clear: The Russians directly targeted our election systems. Russian intelligence conducted hacks of organizations, employees, and volunteers working with the Clinton campaign. They manipulated American voters and coaxed hackers into attacking Democratic computer networks. The Russian campaign began in mid-2014. By the end of 2016, the Russians had set up fake social media accounts that reached millions of voters and aimed to promote Trump and divide Americans.
The Mueller report lays out how the Russian interference campaign ensnared American political operatives, including the Trump campaign and its allies. For more than 100 pages, Mueller outlines scores of Russian contacts with the Trump campaign and presidency. The report states that Russian agents posed as American citizens and tried to contact the Trump campaign for its cooperation. Mueller revealed numerous links between the Trump campaign and the Russians, and that several people connected to the campaign lied to Mueller’s team and tried to obstruct the investigation into the Trump campaign’s contacts with the Russians. WikiLeaks contacted the Russians on Twitter, saying: “If you have anything Hillary-related, we want it in the next two days preferable.” Then three days before the DNC, WikiLeaks released more than 20,000 emails and stolen documents in an attempt to undermine Clinton’s candidacy.
In 2013, Donald Trump took his Miss Universe Pageant to Moscow. Mueller reveals that this is when the Trumps got to know Aras Agalarov, a Russian billionaire and ally of Vladimir Putin. He owned the event hall where the pageant was held. Within a few months, Donald Trump Jr. signed a preliminary agreement with Agalarov’s company to build a Trump Tower property in Moscow. Trump announces his run for presidency in 2015. Three months later, a new effort to build the Trump Tower in Moscow began, this time led by Trump’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, and developer Felix Sater. Felix Sater tells Michael Cohen he’s working with high-level Russian officials. He emails Cohen, saying, “Buddy, our boy can become president of the USA, and we can engineer it. I will get all of Putin’s team to buy in on this.”
The Moscow Trump Tower project is one source of Russian contacts. Mueller exposes about a dozen. Campaign aide Carter Page met with Russians and gave a speech in Russia. Michael Flynn gave speeches in Russia and had contacts with the Russian ambassador, including a discussion of softening sanctions. Foreign policy and national security advisor, Jeff Sessions, also met with the Russian ambassador. Campaign chairman Paul Manafort regularly shared internal polling data with a man tied to Russian intelligence. Trump aide George Papadopoulos repeatedly met with a man connected to Russian intelligence who told Papadopoulos the Russians have dirt on Clinton. Another contact point was the infamous NY Trump Tower meeting on June 9, 2016, where Trump Jr. eagerly anticipated damaging information about Clinton.
Mueller wrote: “The acting attorney general appointed a special counsel on May 17, 2017, prompting the president to state [in private] that it was the end of his presidency.” During Trump’s presidency, WAPO revealed that he was under investigation for obstruction of justice. Three days later, Trump told White House counsel Don McGahn to call acting AG Rod Rosenstein to say Mueller has conflicts and can’t serve anymore. The president says Mueller has to go. McGahn doesn’t comply. Mueller details in the report that Trump obstructed justice at least ten times. Mueller could not pursue due to the DOJ and Bill Barr’s policy that a sitting president cannot be indicted. Mueller also accuses Trump of trying to stop him from investigating Trump and his campaign.
Mueller wrote: “Substantial evidence indicates the attempts to remove the special counsel were linked to investigations of the president’s conduct.” The investigation led to the indictments of 34 individuals. One conclusion says that Trump’s campaign staff presented themselves as “attractive counterintelligence vulnerabilities.” Both Rick Gates and Michael Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI. Roger Stone was charged with obstructing and lying to Congress about his Russian contacts and his connection to the release of documents stolen by the Russians. The “Steele Dossier” had nothing to do with Mueller’s findings. In fact, the first probe began prior to the Dossier being released and the investigation developed in response to two main things: Russia’s hacking of the DNC and intel emerging about a Russian plot to reach out to the Trump campaign to provide dirt on Clinton.
Trump urged hackers to target Democrats on TV. “Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing.” Within five hours of Trump saying those words, Russia’s largest foreign intelligence service targeted Clinton’s office for the first time. Trump has been downplaying the severity and threat of Russian cyber attacks and election meddling for years, siding with Putin over our own intelligence agencies on the matter. Trump capitalized off of Russia’s meddling in the election. The Mueller report said Trump’s campaign “expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts.” Trump proposed partnering with Russia on a cyber security taskforce. It received swift bipartisan backlash and Trump had to be reminded that Russia was a major cyber security threat.
Instead of providing concrete evidence, Gabbard resorts to “word salad,” offering vague accusations that fall apart under scrutiny. This lack of substance is a recurring issue for those who peddle conspiracy theories. When forced to explain their claims, they invariably come up short. It’s an embarrassing performance, highlighting a fundamental lack of understanding or, at worst, a willingness to mislead. The fact that this happens again and again with no consequence is another glaring indictment of the current media practices.
The situation is made worse by those who simply refuse to accept any information that contradicts their pre-conceived notions. This is an environment where “alleged” claims are bandied about without any regard for facts. One begins to wonder if these individuals want to believe anything that justifies the hate. The truth is that there is nothing to talk about; they will continue to spout propaganda, and those who consume it will blindly follow.