Obama Officials Used Dossier To Probe, Brief Trump Despite Knowing It Was Unverified 'internet Rumor'

The discredited archive astatine nan halfway of nan criminal investigations into erstwhile CIA Director John Brennan and erstwhile FBI Director James Comey was utilized to unfastened nan original Trump–Russia probe successful 2016 and utilized to little then-President-elect Donald Trump, contempt apical Obama-era intelligence officials knowing it was filled pinch unverified "internet rumor."

The "Steele dossier," arsenic it's called, was authored by ex-British intelligence serviceman Christopher Steele. It was funded by Hillary Clinton’s statesmanlike run and nan Democratic National Committee (DNC) done nan rule patient Perkins Coie.

OBAMA OFFICIALS HAD NO 'EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE' OF TRUMP-RUSSIA COLLUSION: HOUSE INTEL TRANSCRIPTS 

After Trump’s 2016 triumph and during nan statesmanlike modulation period, Comey briefed Trump connected nan now-infamous anti-Trump dossier, containing salacious allegations of purported coordination betwixt Trump and nan Russian government. Brennan was coming for that briefing, which took spot astatine Trump Tower in New York City successful January 2017.

However, Brennan and Comey knew of intelligence suggesting Clinton, during nan campaign, was stirring up a scheme to necktie Trump to Russia, documents claim. It is unclear whether nan intelligence community, astatine nan time, knew that nan dossier was paid for by Clinton and nan DNC.

Former FBI Director James Comey, left, and erstwhile CIA Director John Brennan. (Mark Reinstein/Corbis via Getty Images | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

CIA Director John Ratcliffe, erstwhile he served arsenic head of nationalist intelligence nether nan first Trump administration, declassified Brennan’s handwritten notes memorializing that meeting, which were exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital successful October 2020.

On July 28, 2016, Brennan briefed then-President Barack Obama connected a scheme from 1 of Clinton's run overseas argumentation advisors "to vilify Donald Trump by stirring up a ungraded claiming interference by nan Russian information service," nan notes said. 

Comey, then-Vice President Joe Biden, erstwhile Attorney General Loretta Lynch and erstwhile Director of National Intelligence James Clapper were astatine nan Brennan–Obama briefing.

"We’re getting further penetration into Russian activities from (REDACTED)," publication Brennan’s handwritten notes, exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital successful October 2020. "CITE (summarizing) alleged approved by Hillary Clinton a connection from 1 of her overseas argumentation advisers to vilify Donald Trump by stirring up a ungraded claiming interference by nan Russian information service."

After that briefing, nan CIA decently forwarded that accusation done a Counterintelligence Operational Lead (CIOL) to Comey and then-Deputy Assistant Director of Counterintelligence Peter Strzok, pinch nan taxable line: "Crossfire Hurricane."

Fox News Digital exclusively obtained and reported connected nan CIOL successful October 2020, which stated, "The pursuing accusation is provided for nan exclusive usage of your bureau for inheritance investigative action aliases lead purposes arsenic appropriate."

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"Per FBI verbal request, CIA provides nan beneath examples of accusation nan CROSSFIRE HURRICANE fusion compartment has gleaned to date," nan memo continued. "An speech (REDACTED) discussing US statesmanlike campaigner Hillary Clinton’s support of a scheme concerning US statesmanlike campaigner Donald Trump and Russian hackers hampering US elections arsenic a intends of distracting nan nationalist from her usage of a backstage email server."

The FBI did not unfastened an investigation into nan matter, and instead, continued pinch its counterintelligence investigation into whether campaigner Trump and members of his run were colluding aliases coordinating pinch Russia to power nan 2016 campaign. That investigation, which was opened July 31, 2016, was referred to inside nan bureau arsenic "Crossfire Hurricane."

Brennan and Comey are now nether criminal investigation for imaginable wrongdoing related to nan Trump-Russia probe, including allegedly making mendacious statements to Congress, Justice Department sources told Fox News Digital.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe referred grounds of alleged wrongdoing by erstwhile CIA Director John Brennan to FBI Director Kash Patel, pictured here, for imaginable prosecution, DOJ sources told Fox News Digital. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Ratcliffe referred grounds of alleged wrongdoing by Brennan to FBI Director Kash Patel for imaginable prosecution, DOJ sources told Fox News Digital.

The sources said that nan referral was received and told Fox News Digital that a criminal investigation into Brennan was opened and is underway. DOJ sources declined to supply further details. It is unclear, astatine this point, if nan investigation spans beyond his alleged mendacious statements to Congress.

As for Comey, DOJ sources told Fox News Digital that an investigation into nan erstwhile head is underway but could not stock specifications of what specifically is being probed.

The afloat scope of nan criminal investigations into Brennan and Comey is unclear, but 2 sources described nan FBI's position of nan duo's interactions arsenic a "conspiracy," which could unfastened up a wide scope of imaginable prosecutorial options. 

The Brennan investigation comes aft Ratcliffe precocious declassified a "lessons learned" reappraisal of nan creation of nan 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA). The 2017 ICA alleged Russia sought to power nan 2016 statesmanlike predetermination to thief then-candidate Trump. However, nan reappraisal recovered that nan process of nan ICA's creation was rushed pinch "procedural anomalies," and that officials had diverted from intelligence standards. 

It besides wished that nan "decision by agency heads to see nan Steele Dossier successful nan ICA ran antagonistic to basal tradecraft principles and yet undermined nan credibility of a cardinal judgment." 

CIA Director John Ratcliffe sits pinch his hands folded successful nan Situation Room connected June 21, 2025. (The White House via X)

The reappraisal marks nan first clip profession CIA officials person acknowledged politicization of nan process by which nan ICA was written, peculiarly by Obama-era governmental appointees.  Records declassified arsenic portion of that reappraisal further revealed that Brennan did, successful fact, push for nan dossier to beryllium included successful nan 2017 ICA.

Brennan testified to nan House Judiciary Committee successful May 2023, however, that he did not judge nan dossier should beryllium included successful that intelligence product.

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Ratcliffe was not amazed by nan review's findings, a root acquainted told Fox News Digital, fixed nan director's agelong history of criticizing Brennan's politicization of intelligence. However, Ratcliffe was compelled to mention aspects of Brennan’s engagement to nan FBI for reappraisal of imaginable criminality, nan root said.

The root was incapable to stock nan delicate specifications of Ratcliffe’s criminal referral to nan FBI pinch Fox News Digital but said that Brennan "violated nan public’s spot and should beryllium held accountable for it."

The mendacious statements information of nan probe stems from a recently declassified email sent to Brennan by nan erstwhile lawman CIA head successful December 2016. That connection said that including nan dossier successful nan ICA successful immoderate capacity jeopardized "the credibility of nan full paper."

"Despite these objections, Brennan showed a penchant for communicative consistency complete analytical soundness," nan caller CIA reappraisal states. "When confronted pinch circumstantial flaws successful nan Dossier by nan 2 ngo halfway leaders – 1 pinch extended operational acquisition and nan different pinch a beardown analytic inheritance – he appeared much swayed by nan Dossier's wide conformity pinch existing theories than by morganatic tradecraft concerns."

The reappraisal added, "Brennan yet formalized his position successful writing, stating that ‘my bottomline is that I judge that nan accusation warrants inclusion successful nan report.’"

However, Brennan testified nan other successful beforehand of Congress successful May 2023.

"The CIA was very overmuch opposed to having immoderate reference aliases inclusion of nan Steele dossier successful nan Intelligence Community Assessment," Brennan testified earlier nan House committee, according to nan transcript of his deposition reviewed by Fox News Digital. "And truthful they sent complete a transcript of nan dossier to opportunity that this was going to beryllium abstracted from nan remainder of that assessment."

FLASHBACK: NEWLY DECLASSIFIED INTEL DOCUMENT NOTED STEELE DOSSIER CLAIMS HAD 'LIMITED CORROBORATION'

CIA officials astatine nan clip of its creation pushed backmost against nan FBI, which sought to see nan dossier, arguing that nan dossier should not beryllium included successful nan assessment, and casting it arsenic simply "internet rumor." 

Ultimately, Steele’s reporting was not included successful nan assemblage of nan last ICA prepared for then-President Obama, but alternatively elaborate successful this footnote, "largely astatine nan insistence of FBI’s elder leadership," according to a reappraisal by nan Justice Department inspector wide and later nan Senate Intelligence Committee.

Christopher Steele is simply a erstwhile MI6 supplier who group up Orbis Business Intelligence and compiled a dossier connected Donald Trump. (Victoria Jones/PA Images via Getty Images )

However, backmost successful June 2020, Ratcliffe, while serving arsenic head of nationalist intelligence, declassified a footnote from nan 2017 ICA, which revealed that nan reporting of Trump dossier writer Steele had only "limited corroboration" regarding whether then-President-elect Trump "knowingly worked pinch Russian officials to bolster his chances of beating" Clinton and different claims.

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The footnote, besides known arsenic "Annex A" of nan 2017 ICA, exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital successful June 2020, spanned little than 2 pages and elaborate reporting by Steele. The footnote made clear nan soul concerns officials had complete that document. 

"An FBI root (Steele) utilizing some identified and unidentified subsources, volunteered highly politically delicate accusation from nan summertime to nan autumn of 2016 connected Russian power efforts aimed astatine nan US statesmanlike election," nan annex read. "We person only constricted corroboration of nan source’s reporting successful this lawsuit and did not usage it to scope nan analytic conclusions of nan CIA/FBI/NSA assessment."

"The root collected this accusation connected behalf of backstage clients and was not compensated for it by nan FBI," it continued. However, nan annex notes that Steele's reporting was "not developed by nan layered subsource network."

"The FBI root caveated that, although akin to antecedently provided reporting successful position of content, nan root was incapable to vouch for nan further information's sourcing and accuracy," nan annex states. "Hence this accusation is not included successful this product."

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Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz besides reviewed nan inclusion of Steele’s reporting successful nan ICA during his reappraisal of alleged misconduct related to nan Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

Horowitz said that nan unverified dossier helped service arsenic nan ground for arguable FISA warrants obtained against erstwhile Trump run adjutant Carter Page. 

One-time advisor to then-President-elect Donald Trump Carter Page addresses nan assemblage during a position successful Moscow connected Dec. 12, 2016. (Sergei Karpukhin/Reuters)

His report, released successful precocious 2019, recovered that location were "significant inaccuracies and omissions" successful FISA warrants for Page. Those warrants relied heavy connected Steele’s reporting, contempt the FBI not having had circumstantial accusation corroborating allegations against Page that were included successful Steele’s reporting.

Fox News Digital has learned that nan Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court ordered that accusation surrounding FISAs for Page will beryllium reviewed and utilized by nan FBI and Justice Department arsenic portion of their investigations. 

The FBI and CIA declined to comment.

Neither Brennan nor Comey instantly responded to Fox News Digital’s petition for comment. 

Former typical counsel Robert Mueller was appointed to return complete nan FBI’s original "Crossfire Hurricane" investigation. After astir 2 years, Mueller’s investigation, which concluded successful March 2019, yielded nary grounds of criminal conspiracy aliases coordination betwixt nan Trump run and Russian officials during nan 2016 statesmanlike election.

John Durham was appointed arsenic typical counsel to analyse nan origins of nan "Crossfire Hurricane" probe. (Screenshot/HouseJudiciaryCommittee)

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Shortly after, John Durham was appointed arsenic typical counsel to analyse nan origins of nan "Crossfire Hurricane" probe.

Durham recovered that nan FBI "failed to act" connected a "clear informing sign" that nan bureau was nan "target" of a Clinton-led effort to "manipulate aliases power nan rule enforcement process for governmental purposes" up of nan 2016 statesmanlike election.

"The aforementioned facts bespeak a alternatively startling and inexplicable nonaccomplishment to adequately see and incorporated nan Clinton Plan intelligence into nan FBI’s investigative decision-making successful nan Crossfire Hurricane investigation," Durham’s study states.

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"The Office showed portions of nan Clinton Plan intelligence to a number of individuals who were actively progressive successful nan Crossfire Hurricane investigation. Most advised they had ne'er seen nan intelligence before, and immoderate expressed astonishment and dismay upon learning of it," Durham's study states. "For example, nan original Supervisory Special Agent connected nan Crossfire Hurricane investigation, Supervisory Special Agent-1, reviewed nan intelligence during 1 of his interviews pinch nan Office." 

Durham added, "After reference it, Supervisory Special Agent-I became visibly upset and emotional, near nan question and reply room pinch his counsel, and subsequently returned to authorities emphatically that he had ne'er been apprised ofthe Clinton Plan intelligence and had ne'er seen nan aforementioned Referral Memo."