Obama stands by Russian collusion report after Trump claims 'treason'
July 22 (UPI) -- Former President Barack Obama called a Russian collusion intelligence report genuine after President Donald Trump earlier on Tuesday accused Obama of treason.
Obama responded to Friday's report by the office of the Director of National Intelligence that accused Obama and his Cabinet of manufacturing an intelligence report to falsely accuse Russia of acting to ensure Trump defeated Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election.
"Nothing in that document issued last week undercuts the widely accepted conclusion that Russia worked to influence the 2016 presidential election but did not successfully manipulate any votes," Obama spokesman Patrick Rodenbush said in a prepared statement on Tuesday.
"These findings were affirmed in a 2020 report by the bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee, led by then-Chairman Marco Rubio."
National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard last week accused the Obama administration of engaging in a "treasonous conspiracy" to undermine Trump's first term in office.
Rodenbush called the allegation "ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction."
Trump earlier in the day accused Obama of "trying to lead a coup" with Hillary Clinton.
"The witch hunt you should be talking about is they caught President Obama," Trump told media at the White House.
Trump made the comment after media asked him about the controversial Jeffrey Epstein files during a visit from Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday.
"It's time to go after people," Trump said. "Obama's been caught directly."
Gabbard in the DNI report said Obama, then-Vice President Joe Biden and members of the Obama Cabinet conspired to create a false report of Russian collusion that led to a years-long coup to remove Trump as president.
The report accuses Obama and others in his administration of pressuring the nation's intelligence community to revise an earlier assessment to suggest Russia acted on behalf of Trump to help him win the presidential election against Clinton.
It says the Obama administration "manufactured and politicized intelligence" and leaked it to media to undermine Trump's presidency.
Gabbard referred the matter to the Department of Justice on Monday for further investigation and possible criminal prosecution.
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