A newly declassified review shows former CIA Director John Brennan insisted on including the discredited Steele dossier in a key intelligence report on Russian interference in the 2016 election—despite repeated warnings it would undermine the report’s credibility.
Key Facts:
- John Brennan, CIA director under President Obama, pushed for the Steele dossier to be included in the 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA).
- A newly declassified review found that this inclusion violated standard intelligence practices and weakened the report’s credibility.
- Senior analysts warned Brennan in December 2016 that including the dossier would jeopardize the entire report.
- The Steele dossier, compiled by a British ex-spy, was funded by the Clinton campaign and Democratic National Committee through a law firm and Fusion GPS.
- Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe ordered the review and released it in July 2025 for transparency.
The Rest of The Story:
The review, ordered by current intelligence leadership, scrutinized how U.S. intelligence agencies assessed Russian efforts during the 2016 election.
A central focus was the controversial decision to include the Steele dossier—an unverified document with allegations against Donald Trump—into the final assessment.
According to the review, Brennan was repeatedly cautioned against the inclusion by top analysts, including the CIA’s deputy director for analysis.
One internal email warned that doing so would “jeopardize the credibility of the entire paper.”
Still, Brennan insisted, writing, “My bottom line is that I believe that the information warrants inclusion in the report.”
The review also criticized the unusually high involvement of agency heads in the ICA process.
It noted this disrupted normal procedures and created a “politically charged environment” that discouraged independent analysis.
NEW: Report via @CIADirector Ratcliffe
•Concludes that in 2016 then CIA Director Brennan and others rushed the Russia election interference intelligence assessment
•Brennan dismissed high level warnings that the Clinton campaign opposition research the “Steele dossier” did not… pic.twitter.com/tNsIzUY42H— Catherine Herridge (@C__Herridge) July 2, 2025
Commentary:
This latest declassification paints a troubling picture of how intelligence was manipulated at the highest levels.
The Brennan-led CIA ignored internal objections and proceeded with including politically motivated material in what was supposed to be an unbiased report.
That decision didn’t just compromise the ICA—it helped launch years of media-driven attacks on a sitting president.
What’s worse is that Brennan’s push for “narrative consistency” took precedence over rigorous analytical standards.
That isn’t just careless—it’s dangerous.
It suggests the nation’s most powerful intelligence agencies were steered by politics, not truth.
That the Steele dossier originated from opposition research paid for by Hillary Clinton’s campaign makes this even more damning.
It was a political hit job dressed up as intelligence, and federal agencies willingly played along.
The review shows a pattern: objections were raised, warnings issued, and all were ignored in favor of advancing a preferred storyline.
The Bottom Line:
The inclusion of the Steele dossier in the 2017 intelligence report on Russian interference was a politically driven decision, not an analytical one.
Former CIA Director John Brennan ignored warnings from senior analysts and chose narrative alignment over objective truth.
This raises serious concerns about the politicization of U.S. intelligence agencies during a pivotal election and demands accountability from those involved.
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