Obama blasts 'bizarre' Trump claim of 2016 election 'treason'
"They tried to steal the election," Trump said at the White House as he claimed Obama had sought to undermine his 2016 victory over Hillary Clinton.
A spokesman for Obama issued a rare retort, calling Trump's attack "a weak attempt at distraction".
Trump was referring to a report from US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard last week that accused Obama and his national security team of a "years-long coup against President Trump" - findings that Democrats have branded false.
Trump's comments on Tuesday came as he faced questions from reporters about late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial.
The president's administration has been under pressure to release more information about the well-connected convicted paedophile.
US House speaker shuts down chamber to block Epstein vote
"The witch hunt that you should be talking about is they caught President Obama absolutely cold," Trump told reporters.
"It's time to go after people, Obama's been caught directly," he added.
"He's guilty. This was treason. This was every word you can think of," Trump said.
His comments came as he hosted Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr in the Oval Office.
Obama spokesman Patrick Rodenbush said: "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.
"But these claims are outrageous enough to merit one. These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction."
Friday's report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence declassified emails between Obama aides, and argued they had suppressed intelligence findings that Russia had failed in probing attempts to hack US election databases.
A declassified copy of the president's daily briefing prepared by US security service chiefs for Obama weeks after Trump beat Clinton and dated 8 December 2016 said: "We assess that Russian and criminal actors did not impact recent US election results by conducting malicious cyber activities against election infrastructure."
But the FBI dissented from the findings it had initially co-authored, and a meeting was held at the White House a day later with top officials, according to the report.
Afterwards an aide to then-Director of National Intelligence James Clapper emailed intelligence chiefs asking them to create a new assessment "per the president's request" detailing the "tools Moscow used and actions it took to influence the 2016 election".
Gabbard argued the emails showed evidence of a "treasonous conspiracy" to harm Trump, and she threatened to refer Obama administration officials to the justice department for prosecution.
But Obama's spokesman said in his statement on Tuesday: "Nothing in the document issued last week undercuts the widely accepted conclusion that Russia worked to influence the 2016 presidential election but did not successfully manipulate any votes."
The US intelligence community published an assessment in January 2017 concluding that Russia had sought to damage Clinton's campaign and boost Trump in the vote three months earlier.
US officials found this effort had included Russian bot farms on social media and hacking of Democratic emails, but they ultimately concluded the impact was probably limited and did not actually change the election result.
A 2020 bipartisan report by the Senate intelligence committee also found that Russia had tried to help Trump's 2016 campaign.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was a senator at the time, was among the Republicans who co-signed that report.
The first two years of Trump's first presidency were overshadowed by an investigation from his own justice department into whether he had conspired with Russia to sway the 2016 outcome.
The resulting Mueller report found a lack of evidence that Trump or his campaign co-ordinated with the Kremlin, and no-one was ever charged with such crimes.
A subsequent special counsel inquiry, the Durham report, found the original FBI probe had lacked "analytical rigor" and relied on "raw, unanalysed and uncorroborated intelligence".
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time Magazine
4 minutes ago
- Time Magazine
History Warns us About the Dangers of Trump's Brain Drain
Since President Donald Trump has taken office, elite Americans and academics are leaving the country. A quarter of those who responded to a recent poll said they would like to move outside the country in the next five years. And European countries are welcoming them. According to data released by the UK Home Office, between March 2024 and March 2025, a record-breaking 6,000 U.S. citizens applied to either become British citizens or to live and work in the country indefinitely. In April, over 300 scientists applied to France's Safe Place for Science Program, which promises 'a safe and stimulating environment for scientists wishing to pursue their research in complete freedom.' Americans are looking to emigrate for the same reasons immigrants have historically chosen to come to the U.S.: political and economic anxiety and instability in their country of origin. The immigration script of the past century has been flipped, and for academics, in particular, the loss of government funding has led them to seek intellectual freedom and the ability to conduct research elsewhere. While the rationale for emigration is clear, the potential consequences of their departure are not. What happens when a critical mass of middle-class, educated professionals leave the country? The exits of prominent people can have unexpected effects on a given country, embarrassing the regimes they've left, adding human capital to the places where they are welcomed. Additionally, when people emigrate, their absence consolidates power around the regimes they left behind. In other words, politics becomes more reflective of the ideologies and values of those who stay. Read More: What's in Canada's Immigration Bill—and Why It's Facing Backlash During South African apartheid, famous musicians such as singer Miriam Makeba were forced into exile as the only way to speak out safely against injustices. Makeba was very vocal in her criticism of the apartheid government at a time when most Black women were silenced by discriminatory laws, including pass laws that restricted movement, and denied the right to own land and even custody of their children. In 1960, she left South Africa and continued to use her voice— both as a musician and activist—to speak on the atrocities in her home country. Her 1963 speech at the United Nations called out global silence on apartheid and encouraged world leaders to act by supporting freedom fighters. In response, the apartheid regime revoked her citizenship and passport. Because Makeba was so beloved for her music and admired for courage, she was granted passports from nine different countries, including Belgium, Ghana, Tanzania, Cuba, Algeria, and Guinea. Among her American peers and friends were the likes of Nina Simone, Marlon Brando, Cicely Tyson, Ray Charles, and Louis Armstrong. Makeba was only able to return home in 1990, at the invitation of the recently-released Nelson Mandela, perhaps the most famous prisoner of the apartheid regime. Like Makeba, trumpeter Hugh Masekela was also considered persona non grata by the apartheid regime, which viewed artistic expression by Black people as an act of violence. Masekela was forced to leave home after the 1960 Sharpeville massacres that resulted in the deaths of 69 people and deepened political unrest across the country. Makeba and Masekela, briefly married, also collaborated in anti-apartheid music. Their impact on the politics in their homeland, even from abroad, was powerful, despite the regime making it difficult for them to interact with family. Their highly anticipated 1980 joint anti-apartheid concert in Lesotho was cancelled after the apartheid regime in South Africa pressured neighboring Lesotho and Botswana. While their music played an essential role in agitating for freedom, exiled artists faced numerous professional challenges and lost opportunities. Makeba's success in exile came at great cost; two of her children died in exile and she was unable to return home to bury them. South Africa also suffered from the loss of critical voices. Not everyone who went into exile returned home or was able to continue speaking up from abroad. Those who returned sometimes lacked the professional skills needed to build a life for themselves, having spent their prime years fighting for their survival. And in the U.S., they were often similarly restricted, as Jim Crow segregation mirrored many of the injustices that they experienced at home in South Africa. As South Africans were pushed out, apartheid became stronger and more violent to dissenters. Even children who attempted to combat the racist laws were killed or beaten as in the Soweto Youth Uprising of 1976. In the aftermath, songs became inspiration to those in South Africa. In 1977, Makeba and Masekela's joint song 'Soweto Blues' was a widely popular protest song about the massacre and a thorn in the side of the regime. Despite being banned in South Africa, collectively their music served as the soundtrack of the anti-apartheid movement. While pushing out dissenters may allow an oppressive regime to consolidate power or suit a nation's current political climate, it can have a huge cost—as America learned at the height of the Cold War. Consider the case of brilliant Chinese scientist Qian Xuesen in the 1950s. Qian had studied at MIT and CalTech and became a full professor at both universities. He went on to co-found NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in 1939, becoming one of the top rocket science experts working for the U.S. government. The U.S. government did not view his Chinese citizenship as a national security threat, because the U.S. and China were allies during World War II. This relationship changed after the war. In 1945, revolutionary leader Mao Zedong declared China a communist country. Chinese nationals living in the U.S. were suddenly seen as state enemies. A new director at JPL, where Qian was now working, reported his concerns that some of the lab members were likely communists. There was fear and suspicion due to the growing Cold War and the rise of McCarthyism. Although there was no evidence of wrongdoing by Qian, he was put under house arrest for five years until his deportation to China in exchange for the repatriation of American pilots captured in the Korean War, in 1955 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower's administration. Qian's politically-motivated exile did little to help America's Cold War, and instead greatly benefitted Communist China. In 1958, he became a member of the Communist Party and revived his career. Prior to his arrival, China did not have a strong rocket science program. Qian became the "Father of Chinese Aerospace and Rocketry." He helped develop the Dongfeng ballistic missile and the Chinese space program. U.S. Secretary of the Navy, Dan A. Kimble called Qian's departure 'the stupidest thing this country ever did. He was no more a communist than I was, and we forced him to go.' Read More: The Brain Drain That Is Killing America's Economy In short, countries push enormous artistic or scientific talent out at their own expense. American brain drain will set the U.S. back decades in innovation and technology, and vanquish America's advantage in education and other major fields. American scientists have been ahead of the rest of the world on healthcare and technological advances like AI. Millions of people have long regarded the United States as a beacon of education and intellectual hope. History shows that an exodus of American academics will likely hasten a collapse of American education, not preserve it. Leaving can also have negative impacts on the quality of democracy in the United States. Citizen engagement across diverse perspectives and ideological lines can lead to a better and more inclusive society, ultimately leading to a stronger democracy. Consider the beloved Statue of Liberty, a cultural landmark, that immigrants were not only welcome, but made up the working fabric of America. Moreover, the exit of American elites and academics, many of whom are voters, can diminish citizen voice and engagement, leading to the decline in the quality of democracy. The historical lesson is a cautionary tale. As academics consider leaving because the current government's policies do not reflect their ideals, the vacuum created by their absence may be filled by people whose values align more with the government. For instance, in the wake of Qian's departure, anticommunist sentiment soared and McCarthyist witch hunts spread. And it took three decades before Mabeka could return to her homeland. Should academics choose to return, they might find America more conservative, and perhaps more flagrantly violent than it was when they left. Indeed, defending democracy is a game best played on home turf. Chipo Dendere is a Political Scientist and Assistant Professor of Africana Studies at Wellesley College. Kellie Carter-Jackson is a Historian and Michael and Denise Kellen '68 Associate Professor of Africana Studies at Wellesley College. Made by History takes readers beyond the headlines with articles written and edited by professional historians. Learn more about Made by History at TIME here. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of TIME editors.
Associated Press
4 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Trump's Environmental Protection Agency moves to repeal finding that allows climate regulation
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's administration on Tuesday proposed revoking a scientific finding that has long been the central basis for U.S. action to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and fight climate change. The proposed Environmental Protection Agency rule rescinds a 2009 declaration that determined that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare. The 'endangerment finding' is the legal underpinning of a host of climate regulations under the Clean Air Act for motor vehicles, power plants and other pollution sources that are heating the planet. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin called for a rewrite of the endangerment finding in March as part of a series of environmental rollbacks announced at the same time in what Zeldin said was 'the greatest day of deregulation in American history.'' A total of 31 key environmental rules on topics from clean air to clean water and climate change would be rolled back or repealed under Zeldin's plan. He singled out the endangerment finding as 'the Holy Grail of the climate change religion' and said he was thrilled to end it 'as the EPA does its part to usher in the Golden Age of American success.'' Tailpipe emission limits also targeted The EPA also called for rescinding limits on tailpipe emissions that were designed to encourage automakers to build and sell more electric vehicles. The transportation sector is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. Three former EPA leaders have criticized Zeldin, saying his March proposal would endanger the lives of millions of Americans and abandon the agency's dual mission to protect the environment and human health. 'If there's an endangerment finding to be found anywhere, it should be found on this administration because what they're doing is so contrary to what the Environmental Protection Agency is about,' Christine Todd Whitman, who led EPA under Republican President George W. Bush, said after Zeldin's plan was made public. The EPA proposal follows an executive order from Trump that directed the agency to submit a report 'on the legality and continuing applicability' of the endangerment finding. Conservatives and some congressional Republicans hailed the initial plan, calling it a way to undo economically damaging rules to regulate greenhouse gases. But environmental groups, legal experts and Democrats said any attempt to repeal or roll back the endangerment finding would be an uphill task with slim chance of success. The finding came two years after a 2007 Supreme Court ruling holding that the EPA has authority to regulate greenhouse gases as air pollutants under the Clean Air Act. Passing court muster could be an issue David Doniger, a climate expert at the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group, said it was virtually 'impossible to think that the EPA could develop a contradictory finding (to the 2009 standard) that would stand up in court.' Doniger and other critics accused Trump's Republican administration of using potential repeal of the endangerment finding as a 'kill shot'' that would allow him to make all climate regulations invalid. If finalized, repeal of the endangerment finding would erase current limits on greenhouse gas pollution from cars, factories, power plants and other sources and could prevent future administrations from proposing rules to tackle climate change. 'The Endangerment Finding is the legal foundation that underpins vital protections for millions of people from the severe threats of climate change, and the Clean Car and Truck Standards are among the most important and effective protections to address the largest U.S. source of climate-causing pollution,'' said Peter Zalzal, associate vice president of the Environmental Defense Fund. 'Attacking these safeguards is manifestly inconsistent with EPA's responsibility to protect Americans' health and well-being,'' he said. 'It is callous, dangerous and a breach of our government's responsibility to protect the American people from this devastating pollution.' ___ Follow the AP's coverage of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at
The Hill
33 minutes ago
- The Hill
Wiley Nickel suspends NC Senate bid, endorses Cooper
Former Rep. Wiley Nickel (D-N.C.) is ending his campaign for North Carolina's Senate seat and endorsing Roy Cooper, a day after the former governor launched his much-anticipated bid. Nickel said in a statement on X on Tuesday that working alongside Cooper while he served in the state Senate and in Congress was an 'honor,' and Cooper's 'steady, bipartisan leadership' has made a difference. 'And for many of us, including me, he's been an inspiration to step up and serve,' Nickel said. 'I proudly endorse Roy Cooper for US Senate and look forward to doing everything I can to help him flip this Senate seat from red to blue.' Nickel's decision was expected after Democrats notched a major recruitment win in getting their ideal candidate to run for the seat held by retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.). Cooper brings a long background in North Carolina politics and a track record as a popular former two-term governor. Nickel entered the race months earlier, before Tillis announced he wouldn't seek another term in office, but Democrats' eyes had been on Cooper, seeing him as their best chance of flipping the seat. Cooper said in his announcement video that he 'never really' wanted to go to Washington, D.C., and only wanted to serve the people of North Carolina in his own state, but the times required him to run. Nickel served one term in the House before he decided against running for reelection after redistricting made his district much more conservative leaning. He said in his statement that he still has 'a lot of work left to do.' 'Public service is part of who I am and you'll hear more from me soon,' he said. Semafor reported that Nickel is considering a bid for district attorney in Wake County. The Republican primary to try to succeed Tillis is still forming, but Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley is expected to enter the race soon with backing from President Trump. This would come after Trump's daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, decided against running for the seat despite speculation that she would. With Trump's support and Whatley being one of the top GOP officials in the country, he would be a clear favorite for the Republican nomination. The race for the seat is also expected to be tight in the battleground state. Democrats haven't won a Senate seat in North Carolina since 2008, but they've had more success on the state level and are hoping Cooper is the right candidate to finally get over the hurdle.
