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The "Russia, Russia" Hoax: A Comprehensive Overview
Key Players in the Russiagate Conspiracy

US News / Politics

The "Russia, Russia" Hoax: A Comprehensive Overview

How the hoax was developed and implemented, the main players involved and potential charges they could face.

Tommy Flynn

Tommy Flynn

July 31, 2025 - The "Russia, Russia" hoax is the biggest scandal and criminal conspiracy in American History. This article outlines the key points, the people involved and the potential charges they could face.

Editor's note: While the evidence is very strong, and it is our opinion that there are many people who could, should, and likely will be prosecuted, we are obligated to point out these are "alleged" crimes. Investigations are ongoing and prosecutions yet to come. All people named in this article, as anyone else, are assumed innocent until proven guilty.

2015–Early 2016: Prelude to the Hoax

  • Late 2015: The Clinton campaign and Democratic National Committee (DNC) begin strategizing opposition research against Donald Trump, the emerging Republican frontrunner.
  • April 2016: The Clinton campaign and DNC hire Fusion GPS, a research firm, through their law firm Perkins Coie, to conduct opposition research on Trump. Fusion GPS is tasked with digging up damaging information to undermine Trump's candidacy.
  • Spring 2016: Intelligence Community (IC) assessments indicate no significant Russian efforts to influence the U.S. presidential election via cyberattacks or other means. These early reports suggest Russia lacks intent or capability to directly sway the election outcome.

Mid-2016: Fabrication of the Narrative

  • June 2016: Fusion GPS hires Christopher Steele, a former British MI6 officer, to compile a dossier on Trump’s alleged ties to Russia. Steele relies on unverified Russian sources, producing a series of memos filled with salacious and uncorroborated allegations of Trump-Russia collusion. The dossier is funded indirectly by the Clinton campaign and DNC.
  • July 2016: Steele begins sharing dossier excerpts with FBI contacts, despite its unverified nature. The FBI, aware of Steele’s ties to the Clinton campaign, accepts the dossier as part of its intelligence gathering.
  • July 28, 2016: CIA Director John Brennan briefs President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, FBI Director James Comey, and others in the Oval Office on intelligence from a Clinton campaign foreign policy advisor. The advisor claims Russian interference aims to “vilify” Trump, though no empirical evidence supports this. This briefing marks early efforts to frame Trump as a Russian asset.
  • July 31, 2016: Based on a tip from Australian diplomats about Trump campaign advisor George Papadopoulos mentioning Russian “dirt” on Hillary Clinton, the FBI launches “Crossfire Hurricane,” a counterintelligence investigation into possible Trump-Russia ties. The investigation lacks direct evidence of collusion but proceeds under pressure to validate the narrative.
  • Summer 2016: IC continues to assess that Russia is “probably not trying” to influence the election through cyber means, focusing instead on general disinformation to sow distrust in U.S. democracy. These findings are documented in internal reports but suppressed later.

Late 2016: Obama’s Direct Involvement and Intelligence Manipulation

  • September 2016: Steele shares the dossier with FBI officials, who use it despite warnings from analysts about its bias and lack of corroboration. The dossier becomes a key component in shaping the Trump-Russia narrative within the FBI and media leaks.
  • October 2016: The FBI obtains a FISA warrant to surveil Trump campaign advisor Carter Page, relying heavily on the Steele dossier. The application omits exculpatory information, such as Page’s prior cooperation with the CIA, and fails to disclose the dossier’s Clinton campaign funding. This surveillance amplifies the collusion narrative.
  • November 8, 2016: Donald Trump wins the presidential election against Hillary Clinton, prompting alarm among Obama administration officials and Clinton allies who fear their narrative may lose traction.
  • December 7, 2016: Director of National Intelligence (DNI) James Clapper’s talking points state that “foreign adversaries did not use cyberattacks on election infrastructure to alter the U.S. Presidential election outcome.” This aligns with pre-election IC assessments that Russia lacked intent or capability to directly influence the election.
  • December 9, 2016: President Obama convenes a National Security Council meeting with top officials, including Clapper, Brennan, Susan Rice, John Kerry, Loretta Lynch, and Andrew McCabe. Obama, dissatisfied with the IC’s findings that Russia did not significantly influence the election, orders a new Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) to detail “tools Moscow used and actions it took to influence the 2016 election.” Clapper’s executive assistant emails IC leaders, tasking them with producing this new assessment under Obama’s “unusual directives.” This marks Obama’s direct refusal to accept the initial intel report and his order for a new one implicating Trump.
  • December 2016: Obama administration officials begin leaking to media outlets, including The Washington Post, claiming Russia used “cyber means” to influence the election outcome. These leaks falsely allege a CIA conclusion that Russia intervened to help Trump, contradicting earlier IC findings. The leaks aim to cement the collusion narrative before Trump’s inauguration.

Early 2017: Public Rollout of the Hoax

  • January 6, 2017: The new ICA, rushed under Obama’s orders, is released. It claims Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an “influence campaign” to help Trump win, relying on the Steele dossier and other uncorroborated sources. This assessment contradicts six months of prior IC findings that Russia lacked intent or capability to “hack” the election. The ICA is publicized to delegitimize Trump’s victory.
  • January 10, 2017: BuzzFeed publishes the Steele dossier, amplifying the collusion narrative. The dossier is included in a classified annex to the ICA briefed to Obama and Trump, despite its discredited status within the IC.
  • January 2017: Obama administration officials scramble to preserve intelligence on alleged Trump-Russia ties, spreading it across agencies to ensure it survives the transition to the Trump administration. This effort reflects fears that Trump might suppress or destroy the narrative.
  • March 2017: House Intelligence Committee begins investigating Russian interference and Trump-Russia collusion, deposing Obama-era officials like Clapper, Rice, and Lynch. These officials admit under oath they saw no “empirical evidence” of collusion but express vague “concerns” based on anecdotal evidence.

2017–2019: Mueller Investigation and Sustained Narrative

  • May 17, 2017: Special Counsel Robert Mueller is appointed to investigate Russian interference and potential Trump campaign collusion. The probe, fueled by the ICA and dossier, consumes two years and significant resources, targeting Trump associates like Paul Manafort and Michael Flynn.
  • 2017–2018: House Intelligence Committee transcripts reveal Obama officials, including Clapper, Rice, Samantha Power, and Ben Rhodes, admit they lacked direct evidence of Trump-Russia collusion. Despite this, they continued to push the narrative publicly, aligning with media leaks.
  • March 2019: Mueller’s report concludes there is no evidence of criminal coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia. The report does not reach a conclusion on obstruction of justice, which Attorney General William Barr declines to pursue. The lack of collusion evidence begins to undermine the hoax narrative.

2019–2023: Initial Uncovering of the Hoax

  • May 2019: Attorney General Barr appoints Special Counsel John Durham to investigate the origins of the Trump-Russia probe. Durham’s mandate includes examining the FBI’s handling of the Steele dossier and Crossfire Hurricane.
  • April 2020: A bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee report, co-led by then-Senator Marco Rubio, affirms Russian interference but finds no evidence of Trump campaign collusion. This contrasts with the House GOP report, which questions the ICA’s tradecraft and reliance on the dossier.
  • September 2020: House Intelligence Committee, led by Rep. Devin Nunes, releases a report alleging the Obama administration’s ICA was based on “potentially biased” or “implausible” intelligence, including the Steele dossier. The report claims Obama’s orders led to the suppression of evidence showing Putin preferred Clinton or was indifferent to Trump’s victory.
  • May 2023: Durham’s report concludes the FBI lacked corroborated evidence for Crossfire Hurricane, exhibited confirmation bias, and mishandled the Steele dossier. It criticizes the Clinton campaign’s role in funding the dossier and the FBI’s failure to verify its claims. The report marks a significant step in exposing the hoax but stops short of alleging a broader conspiracy.

2025: New Evidence of Obama’s Direct Role

  • July 2, 2025: CIA Director John Ratcliffe releases a review criticizing the 2017 ICA’s rushed timeline, compartmentalization, and reliance on unverified sources like the Steele dossier. The review alleges Brennan’s excessive involvement deviated from IC standards but does not directly implicate Obama.
  • July 18, 2025: DNI Tulsi Gabbard declassifies documents revealing “overwhelming evidence” that Obama and his national security team manufactured the Russia collusion narrative post-election. The documents include Clapper’s December 7, 2016, talking points and emails from Clapper’s assistant ordering a new ICA at Obama’s direction, contradicting prior IC assessments. Gabbard calls this a “treasonous conspiracy” to subvert Trump’s presidency.
  • July 23, 2025: Gabbard declassifies a 2020 House Intelligence Committee report, originally drafted by Nunes, alleging Obama’s “unusual” orders led to the ICA’s false claim that Putin aimed to help Trump. The report cites suppressed intelligence showing Putin’s lack of concern for Trump’s victory and possible preference for Clinton. Gabbard refers Obama and others to the DOJ for criminal investigation.
  • July 24, 2025: The DOJ forms a “strike force” to probe Gabbard’s evidence, focusing on Obama, Clapper, Brennan, Rice, Kerry, Lynch, and McCabe’s roles in manufacturing intelligence. Criminal referrals target Brennan and Comey for false statements to Congress, with Patel’s FBI uncovering sensitive documents hidden in “burn bags.”
  • July 2025 (Ongoing): Gabbard’s releases intensify scrutiny, with Trump claiming Obama’s signed orders prove his direct orchestration of the hoax. Obama’s spokesman calls the allegations “ridiculous,” but former officials remain silent. The narrative gains traction among Trump supporters, with calls for prosecutions to prevent future politicization of intelligence.

Key Artifacts and Evidence of the Hoax

  • Steele Dossier: A 35-page compilation of 17 memos authored by Christopher Steele, a former MI6 officer, funded by the Clinton campaign and DNC through Fusion GPS and Perkins Coie. The dossier alleges deep ties between Trump, his campaign, and Russian operatives, including unverified claims of financial dealings, kompromat, and coordinated election interference. Despite lacking corroboration, it was used by the FBI to justify surveillance (e.g., FISA warrant on Carter Page) and to bolster the January 2017 ICA’s claims of Russian intent to elect Trump. Its discredited status was later confirmed by the Durham report, which highlighted its reliance on unverified Russian sources and its role in fueling a false narrative.
  • Crossfire Hurricane: The FBI’s counterintelligence investigation, launched July 31, 2016, to probe alleged Trump campaign ties to Russia. Initiated based on a vague tip about George Papadopoulos mentioning Russian “dirt” on Clinton, the investigation lacked concrete evidence of collusion from the outset. Driven by political pressure and the Steele dossier, it involved aggressive tactics, including FISA surveillance of Carter Page, and was marred by confirmation bias, as later detailed in the Durham report. Crossfire Hurricane set the stage for the broader collusion narrative, despite failing to uncover evidence of Trump-Russia coordination.
  • January 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA): A report ordered by President Obama in December 2016, released January 6, 2017, claiming Russian President Vladimir Putin orchestrated an “influence campaign” to help Trump win the 2016 election. The ICA relied on unverified sources, including the Steele dossier, and contradicted earlier IC findings that Russia lacked intent or capability to directly influence the election outcome. Produced under rushed conditions and Obama’s direct orders, it was designed to delegitimize Trump’s victory and was used to justify the Mueller investigation. The 2025 declassifications exposed its fabrication, highlighting suppressed evidence that Putin was indifferent or preferred Clinton.
  • Declassified Documents (2025): A series of documents released by DNI Tulsi Gabbard in July 2025, including James Clapper’s December 7, 2016, talking points, emails from Clapper’s executive assistant ordering a new ICA, and a 2020 House Intelligence Committee report led by Devin Nunes. These documents reveal Obama’s direct role in rejecting initial IC assessments that cleared Russia of significant election interference and ordering a fabricated ICA to implicate Trump. The 2020 report, previously suppressed, cites intelligence showing Putin’s lack of preference for Trump, while Clapper’s emails confirm Obama’s “unusual directives” to manufacture the collusion narrative. Gabbard’s releases prompted DOJ investigations into Obama and his team’s actions.

Principle Figures and the Possible Consequences They Could face

  • Barack Obama (President): Treason (18 USC 2381), seditious conspiracy (18 USC 2384), conspiracy against rights (18 USC 241), abuse of power, election interference. Ongoing coverup (obstruction of justice, 18 USC 1512) extends SOL beyond 5-year limit for 2016 acts.
  • Joe Biden (Vice President): Seditious conspiracy, conspiracy to defraud US (18 USC 371), false statements (18 USC 1001). Coverup involvement extends SOL.
  • Hillary Clinton (Candidate): Conspiracy to defraud, election interference via dossier funding. SOL expired for 2016; coverup may extend.
  • John Brennan (CIA Director): Treason, perjury (18 USC 1621), false statements to Congress, FISA abuse (50 USC 1809). 2017 lies SOL expired; recent coverup resets.
  • James Clapper (DNI): Treason, perjury, false statements, intelligence manipulation. SOL expired for 2016-17; coverup extends.
  • Susan Rice (National Security Advisor): Seditious conspiracy, obstruction, false statements. Coverup extends SOL.
  • John Kerry (Secretary of State): Conspiracy against rights, election interference. SOL likely expired; coverup may apply.
  • Loretta Lynch (Attorney General): Abuse of power, conspiracy to defraud, FISA violations. SOL expired for core acts; ongoing coverup extends.
  • James Comey (FBI Director): Treason, perjury, false statements, leaking classified info (18 USC 793). 2017 SOL expired; coverup resets.
  • Andrew McCabe (FBI Deputy Director): False statements, perjury, conspiracy. SOL partially expired; coverup extends.
  • Christopher Steele (Dossier Author): False statements, conspiracy. SOL expired; potential foreign agent charges ongoing.

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