By A newly declassified intelligence document, released Tuesday by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, is stirring renewed debate over the 2016 presidential election and Hillary Clinton’s health, citing alleged Russian surveillance of Democratic Party communications during her campaign.
The 2020 report, disclosed publicly after a long-delayed declassification process initiated by Sen. Chuck Grassley, contains a striking claim attributed to Russia’s SVR (Foreign Intelligence Service): that intercepted internal communications from the Democratic National Committee suggested then-candidate Clinton was grappling with “intensified psycho-emotional problems,” including mood swings and erratic behavior. According to the report, she was allegedly placed on a “daily regimen of heavy tranquilizers” amid what was described as an obsessive fear of losing the presidency and a “thirst for power.”
The claims resurfaced Wednesday revealing that the SVR purportedly intended to leak the material only in the event of a Clinton victory.
WOW. Page 17 of the declassified House intelligence committee report is wild. It reveals that Russia had huge amounts of potential anti-Clinton dirt that it sat on in the final days of the 2016 campaign. It included:
-Internal claims that Hillary was on “heavy tranquilizers” and… pic.twitter.com/wRmuikWt5v
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) July 23, 2025
That plan, the report suggests, was abandoned following her loss to Donald Trump.
The Washington Times reported that Russia may have considered her to be the preferred candidate, based on Russian Foreign Intelligence Service reporting on her psychological health, the report found.
“By keeping the most damaging material on Clinton in reserve, Putin was not only demonstrating a clear lack of concern for Trump’s election fate, but conversely, his actions could also indicate that he preferred to see Secretary Clinton elected, knowing she would be a more vulnerable President than a candidate Trump,” the House report stated.
Mr. Trump is now overseeing a broad declassification of reports, communications and other materials related to what Mr. Trump and many in the MAGA world call the “Russia hoax,” led by Democrats, that attempted to tie his 2016 victory to a now-debunked alliance with Mr. Putin.
The report released Wednesday found that the Obama-era intelligence community assessment was in part based on flawed information and on an unverified conclusion that mr. Putin “aspired” to help Mr. Trump win the election.
The conclusion relied specifically on “one scant, an unverifiable fragment of a sentence” from a single source that was published in a report during the final weeks of Obama’s presidency. It stated Mr. Putin was “counting on” Mr. Trump’s win.
Someone online speculated that the new information explained Hillary’s famous “illness” during a 9-11 memorial service in 2016.
Makes you wonder if this was a “heavy tranquilizers” moment pic.twitter.com/ZJo5DBLP8i
— Erin (Air-Ren) Thatcher (@eethatcher) July 23, 2025
Clinton’s office had has not yet responded to the news.
Last week, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released a newly declassified report alleging that former President Barack Obama and his national security team deliberately politicized intelligence in the aftermath of Donald Trump’s 2016 election victory. According to the report, senior officials within the intelligence community manufactured narratives about Russian interference with the intention of undermining the incoming administration. Gabbard claims the effort amounted to a multi-year attempt to delegitimize Trump’s presidency, including fueling the Mueller investigation and subsequent impeachments.
The declassified documents include internal emails, draft assessments, and agency feedback from late 2016. Contrary to the public narrative at the time, many intelligence officials expressed skepticism about Russia’s ability or intent to directly manipulate vote tallies. A September 2016 memo noted “no indication” of sabotage targeting voting systems, and the FBI reportedly pressed other agencies to avoid overstating Russia’s election-related actions. A whistleblower within the intelligence community stated that they “could not concur in good conscience” with claims that Russia had a clear preference for Trump.
The documents also revealed interagency disagreement over the attribution of leaked DNC emails. While it was widely assumed that Russia was responsible, both the NSA and FBI reportedly held only “low confidence” in assigning blame to Russian actors.
Gabbard condemned the alleged abuse of power as a constitutional threat, calling for criminal investigations and full accountability. On Wednesday, she doubled down, announcing that she was referring the former president to the Department of Justice for ciminal implications.
🚨 HOLY. SMOKES. A political nuke just went off in the White House briefing room.
REPORTER: Are you referring former President Obama to the DOJ for criminal implications?
DNI TULSI GABBARD: "Correct."
"The evidence we've found and released directly point to President Obama… pic.twitter.com/byO3tDNPpw
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) July 23, 2025
In a rare and sharply worded rebuttal, former President Barack Obama rejected President Donald Trump’s assertion that he orchestrated the Trump-Russia investigation, denouncing the claims as “bizarre” and “ridiculous.” The statement, issued through Obama spokesman Patrick Rodenbush, marked a break from the former president’s usual silence on matters concerning his successor.
“Out of respect for the office of the presidency, our office does not normally dignify the constant nonsense and misinformation flowing out of this White House with a response,” Rodenbush said, according to Fox News. “But these claims are outrageous enough to merit one.”
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