The office of Tulsi Gabbard, Director of National Intelligence, has reportedly referred at least two former members of the Intelligence Community to the Justice Department for potential criminal prosecution related to their involvement in the 2019 impeachment proceedings against President Trump.
Among those referred is Michael Atkinson, the former Inspector General of the Intelligence Community. Gabbard’s office found that Atkinson had not adhered to the proper procedures before forwarding a whistleblower complaint to Congress concerning Trump’s controversial July 2019 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to a report from Fox News on Wednesday.
Additionally, the whistleblower, who allegedly contacted Democratic lawmakers about Trump’s phone call prior to filing a formal complaint, has also been referred for possible prosecution, as reported by the news outlet.
A representative from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence confirmed to The Post that a criminal referral had indeed been sent to the Department of Justice. This referral pertains to “one or more former employees of the Intelligence Community and their involvement in the 2019 impeachment of President Trump.”
The referrals, prepared by the ODNI’s general counsel, cite “possible criminal activity” concerning Atkinson’s communications and briefings with the House Intelligence Committee back in 2019.
These developments follow Gabbard’s recent release of a collection of newly declassified documents. These documents suggest that Atkinson’s actions in the 2019 impeachment proceedings were based on weak evidence, exhibited bias, and lacked firsthand accounts.
The documents included transcripts of the former inspector generalâs closed-door testimony with the House Intelligence Committee, which were withheld from House lawmakers handling the Trump impeachment inquiry.
âDeep state actors within the Intelligence Community concocted a false narrative that was used by Congress to usurp the will of the American people and impeach the duly-elected President of the United States,â Gabbard said in a statement upon releasing the documents.
âInspector General Atkinson failed to uphold his responsibility to the American people, putting political motivations over the truth. And this, along with the politicization of the whistleblower process by a former CIA employee who was working hand in glove with Democrats in Congress, are egregious examples of the deep state playbook on how to weaponize the Intelligence Community.â
Gabbard added: âExposing these tactics and showing how they undermine the fabric of our democratic republic furthers the critical cause of transparency and accountability and will help prevent future abuse of power.â
The DOJ did not immediately respond to The Postâs request for comment.
