Newly declassified documents from the Durham Report Appendix, released by Senator Chuck Grassley, reveal that the U.S. intelligence community knew the Trump–Russia collusion narrative originated from Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign.
The documents indicate that the FBI and senior Obama-era officials were aware of the Clinton campaign’s plan to fabricate a Trump–Russia connection to deflect from Clinton’s private email scandal. The plan, approved by Clinton herself, involved leaking the narrative to the media and potentially coordinating with the FBI to legitimize it.
Despite internal warnings about the credibility of the Steele Dossier, then-President Obama ordered a second intelligence report tying Trump to Russia. That report was produced under the direction of CIA Director John Brennan and DNI James Clapper, using discredited opposition research.
Thousands of related FBI documents were nearly destroyed, but Trump adviser Kash Patel reportedly recovered them in a hidden FBI room.
Grassley called the revelations “one of the biggest political scandals and cover-ups in American history.”
