Tulsi Gabbard reveals why Russia believed Hillary Clinton's 2016 win was 'inevitable'

WASHINGTON, DC: Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard is shedding new light on Russia’s apparent role in the 2016 US presidential election, arguing that Moscow never backed Donald Trump but was instead preparing for a Hillary Clinton presidency.

In a striking revelation, Gabbard pointed to newly released intelligence documents from her team that challenge the long-standing narrative of Russian interference. According to her, the Kremlin viewed Clinton’s victory as a foregone conclusion and focused its efforts not on electing Trump, but on creating political turmoil within the US.

Tulsi Gabbard says Russia may have gathered intel about Hillary Clinton's 'psycho-emotional problems'

On Miranda Devine’s 'Pod Force One' podcast, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard revealed that Russia privately believed Hillary Clinton’s victory in the 2016 election was a near certainty, as per The New York Post. 

“It surprised me that all of these documents still existed, quite frankly,” she shared. “As we’ve learned in later documents that we’ve reviewed throughout that campaign, Russia believed that Hillary Clinton would win the election. They felt it was inevitable."

Last month, Gabbard’s team began releasing a cache of intelligence files that offer a behind-the-scenes look at how the intelligence community handled the probe into Russian interference during the 2016 election. 

Among the materials was a 2020 House Intelligence Committee report that alleged Russia may have gathered intelligence suggesting Clinton was being treated with “heavy tranquilizers” due to “psycho-emotional problems,” including extreme mood swings, claims that were never publicly disclosed at the time.

Gabbard questioned why, if Russia’s true aim was to boost Trump’s chances, such damaging intelligence wasn’t made public.

“If Russia aspired to help Trump get elected, which is what the manufactured January 2017 intelligence community assessment says with high confidence, according to [John] Brennan and [James] Clapper, then Putin would have released the most damaging information and emails to help President Trump,” she argued.

Instead, Gabbard believes Moscow held back, expecting Clinton to win and planning to release the materials in the days or weeks before her inauguration.

Tulsi Gabbard accuses Barack Obama of orchestrating a covert effort to undermine Donald Trump's presidency

US officials have long accused Russia of hacking the Democratic National Committee's emails during the 2016 presidential campaign. However, according to a 2020 House Intelligence Committee report, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s main goal wasn't to support a specific candidate, but rather to shake Americans' trust in the country’s democratic system.

Gabbard criticized the lasting impact of what she calls the "Russia collusion narrative," saying it caused the most harm to the American people and the nation’s democratic institutions. She also argued that Trump and his family suffered deeply as a result of what she described as a politically motivated "hoax" created by the Obama administration.

Gabbard claimed that Obama ordered the 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) as part of a larger effort to delegitimize Trump’s victory. She characterized this as a covert attempt to mislead the public and overturn the election’s outcome.

“What we now know came from President Obama was a covert mission,” she said, “Essentially, to subvert the will of the American people, create this lie that would challenge the legitimacy of President Trump’s election and the four years of his administration, resulting and affecting in what was truly a years’ long coup.”

Internet reacts to Tulsi Gabbard's claims that Russia beleived Hillary Clinton's 2016 victory was 'inevitable'

After Tulsi Gabbard shared her reasoning for why Russia may have believed Hillary Clinton's victory in 2016 was inevitable, reactions quickly flooded social media. The online reactions reflected a mix of skepticism, frustration, and political polarization surrounding Gabbard’s controversial claims.

One user challenged her logic, writing, “If Russia had thought a Clinton win was inevitable, they wouldn't have done things to help Trump.”

Another critic dismissed Gabbard entirely, writing, “What a disappointment Tulsi Gabbard has been. Her efforts to distract from the Epstein files are pathetic. She needs to resign and retain a shred of dignity.”

Others connected her comments to broader political frustrations. “Tulsi talking about Hillary is proof of how desperate the Rs are getting to stay in power. Wasn’t Trump going to throw Hillary in jail or something?” one commenter remarked.

A more emotional reaction read, “Can you imagine giving up everything for Hillary Clinton? They all did it for that witch and when it came down to it, the people rejected her. That's gotta sting a little, right? 🤔.”

Some questioned Gabbard's credibility, pointing to past criticism from Trump, with one writing, “Can’t listen to a word Tulsi says after President Trump told us not to believe her because she was wrong about Iran’s nuclear program. Maybe if he said she was right.”

Meanwhile, an individual quipped, “Since it has long been suspected that Tulsi is a Russian asset, I believe her.”

This article contains remarks made on the internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.