The Republican leaders of the House and Senate intelligence committees have rejected a top-secret whistleblower complaint against Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence. The complaint alleges that Gabbard withheld classified information for political reasons.
Senator Tom Cotton and Representative Rick Crawford, both of Arkansas, said they believed the complaint was not credible and motivated by political opposition. Cotton wrote on social media that it appeared to be an effort to undermine the Trump administration. Crawford described it as an attempt to smear Gabbard’s reputation.
Democrats have criticised the delay in referring the complaint to Congress, which took eight months. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia noted that the law requires such a referral within 21 days. He suggested there may have been an effort to “bury” the complaint. Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut said he would continue to investigate.
The complaint, which has been heavily redacted, was hand-delivered to the “gang of eight” senior lawmakers this week. The intelligence community’s inspector general stated that a previous inspector general had found the main allegation not credible in June, but was unable to assess a separate claim that Gabbard’s office failed to report a potential crime to the Justice Department.
Andrew Bakaj, the attorney for the whistleblower, argued there was no justification for keeping the complaint from Congress since last spring. Gabbard’s office has denied any wrongdoing and defended the eight-month review due to the high level of classification involved.
