The House Intelligence Committee released a declassified report that rewires the 2016 election narrative. Page 17 confirms Russian intelligence had internal records on Hillary Clinton’s health, foreign dealings, and party communications. They chose not to release any of it during the campaign. That decision undercuts the central claim made by Brennan’s CIA.
Russian intercepts said Clinton was on tranquilizers and struggling with “intensified psy*ho-emotional problems.” Other records cited type 2 diabetes and ischemic heart disease. Internal Democratic memos called the condition “extraordinarily alarming.” White House officials reportedly prepared contingency plans. None of this came out before Election Day.
Russian sources also intercepted notes from Clinton’s private meetings with religious leaders. They claimed she offered major funding through the State Department in return for political backing. European allies raised concerns. Internal party messages admitted foreign governments saw her as “not up to the job.”
The timing mattered. Clinton’s polling average fell to just over one point in late October. If Russia’s goal was to damage her, that was the time. But they held the material. The report says Moscow expected Clinton to win and planned to release the intel later to weaken her presidency. That fits standard Russian strategy. It does not support the story that Putin tried to elect Trump.
The CIA’s 2017 report said the opposite. Brennan claimed Putin supported Trump and made that assessment with “high confidence.” That conclusion came from a single vague report from a questionable source. The House report confirms CIA analysts objected. Brennan overruled them. The final version ignored contradicting intelligence and failed to meet core analytic standards.
A former NSA staffer said, “This was buried. We flagged it. They ignored it.” A retired CIA official added, “The tradecraft failures were deliberate.” One congressional aide said, “The real story was suppressed to protect a narrative.”
Only five CIA analysts wrote the report. One controlled the final language. The draft was rushed. Coordination with other agencies was blocked. Peer review was limited. The full report went out two weeks before Trump took office.
The new declassified files include internal interviews, footnotes, and raw source notes. They show intelligence officials believed Clinton would win. They show damaging material was kept quiet. They show Brennan’s team misrepresented evidence and blocked dissent.
Sources
https://intelligence.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2576
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/23/gabbard-russia-2016-election-declassification-00471289
https://democrats-intelligence.house.gov/russiainvestigation/