Free Republic

… Put yourself in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s shoes against the backdrop of 35 previously exiled Russian officials from the United States as a result of the 2016 Intelligence Community Assessment and Joint Analysis Report {BACKGROUND}.QUESTION: What exactly would Vladimir Putin think about this admission from the CIA?[Source]CIA Director John Ratcliffe admits the former CIA and FBI fabricated the intelligence that led to the expulsion of Russian officials under the false premise of Russia “hacking” the 2016 election. Why now?How would Putin interpret this very public message?Then, consider the sequence….President Trump said publicly he had no prior knowledge of the...

A review of CIA activity surrounding the 2016 Trump-Russia collusion hoax paints a damning portrait of its upper echelon, who were obsessively involved in crafting the conclusion that candidate Donald Trump conspired with Russian assets to influence the election that year. On Thursday CIA Director John Ratcliffe released a new report, titled “Tradecraft Review of the 2016 Intelligence Community Assessment [ICA] on Russian Election Interference” and which examined the involvement of then-CIA Director John Brennan, FBI Director James Comey and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper in crafting the original report on Trump and Russia. Passages in Ratcliffe’s report describe...

A "lessons learned" review by John Ratliffe's CIA finds multiple problems with the U.S. intelligence community's assessment on the 2016 election, including related to the inclusion of the discredited Steele Dossier and the conclusions on Putin's motives. CIA Director John Ratcliffe has released a scathing review of the U.S. intelligence community’s assessment of Russian influence in the 2016 election, criticizing then-CIA Director John Brennan for joining the FBI in pushing to include British ex-spy Christopher Steele’s baseless anti-Trump dossier.In the review, released Tuesday, Ratcliffe also critiqued the CIA and FBI's “high confidence” assessment that Russian leader Vladimir Putin had “aspired”...

President Donald Trump’s decision to strike three nuclear sites in Iran could deepen a divide among some of the Republican’s supporters, including high-profile backers who had said any such move would run counter to the anti-interventionism he promised to deliver. Notably though, immediately following Trump’s Saturday announcement of the strike, some of those who had publicly spoken out against U.S. involvement voiced their support. The lead-up to the move against Iranian nuclear sites had exposed fissures within Trump’s “Make American Great Again” base as some of that movement’s most vocal leaders, with large followings of their own, expressed deep concern...

As President Trump is known to say, “don’t make it complicated.” Just look at things as they are, as they present themselves to be, and ask the most obvious questions. Consider Antifa.How can a group within America openly threaten police, use violence against police, throw Molotov cocktails, bricks and explosive fireworks at police. Use batons, shields, bats and physical violence against police and federal law enforcement; destroy vehicles, set cars on fire, destroy property, trash and block the streets and create chaos…. Completely without being stopped?It doesn’t matter where it is happening, that’s irrelevant. Think plainly and simply.How does any...

A former National Intelligence Officer for Cyber under President Trump and Joe Biden has come forward with explosive allegations: the CIA and Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) deliberately buried evidence of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) interference in the 2020 presidential election—and fired him when he refused to play along. The whistleblower’s damning post came in response to General Mike Flynn’s tweet Monday questioning why foreign election interference by the CCP wasn’t exposed back in 2020: “So there was foreign interference by the CCP in the 2020 presidential election. Who was running the USIC at that time and...

CBS News is currently facing backlash on social media after they posted what appeared to be an advertisement for “No Kings Day” protest merchandise to X on Friday, with users slamming the outlet for pushing the anti-Trump goods on the eve of a large-scale political protest. Thousands of people are expected to rally in hundreds of cities across America on Saturday to protest the Trump administration and counter the president’s military parade in Washington, D.C. to mark the Army’s 250th birthday. Today is also Flag Day, which commemorates the adoption of the U.S. flag on June 14, 1777. The counter-protesters...

An ex-CIA analyst was sentenced to more than three years in prison Wednesday for leaking top secret documents about Israel’s plans to retaliate against Iran last year. Asif William Rahman, 34, had pleaded guilty in January to two counts of willful retention and transmission of classified information after he was arrested for absconding with records from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency last October that indicated Israel was planning to launch airstrikes in response to a massive Iranian missile attack. Rahman, who had been a CIA employee since 2016 and had access to top secret documents, leaked the stolen information on social...

A top adviser to President Obama is the contact person within the White House for communications with the Free Gaza Movement over plans to challenge Israel's blockade of the terrorist Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, according to a reputable source close to the Netanyahu government. The source, a career official whose reliability was established through his tips for the book, "Why Israel Can't Wait," identified John O. Brennan, deputy national security adviser for homeland security and counterterrorism, as the contact. The allegation raises the bizarre possibility that the Free Gaza Movement's flotilla action in the Mediterranean was being coordinated with the White...

Judicial Watch announced last week that in a report to the court in its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) stated it “cannot fully predict” when records about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy will be released. The National Archives estimates that there are “over six million pages” of responsive records.

The 20-year-old who, six months later, would open fire at President Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally — striking his ear and killing an audience member — was busy polishing his applications to transfer from community college to a four-year engineering program. Crooks was gathering transcripts and asking friends to review his personal statement. He was also designing a bomb. Oh. Yeah, kind of an important fact to throw into the mix. Apparently, Crooks had placed an order for “more than two gallons of nitromethane from an online speciality fuel retailer using an encrypted email account.” “Twelve days later Crooks’...

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna @RepLuna 🚨 According to Douglas P. Horne, Frm. Assassinations Record Review, President Kennedy sustained multiple bullet wounds, with photographic evidence to support this claim—evidence that was deliberately concealed and withheld from the official record. "8 different sets of photographs are not in the official collection today, and never have been." 5:45 PM · May 21, 2025

CIA Deputy Director Michael Ellis says that China represents an “existential threat” to the United States and that the agency’s top priority is outpacing the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in a high-stakes technological arms race that spans semiconductors, biotechnology, and artificial intelligence.“China is the existential threat to American security in a way we really have never confronted before,” Ellis told Axios in an interview published on May 21, adding that a key CIA objective is to help U.S. companies maintain a “decisive technological advantage” to counter the CCP’s malign actions against the homeland.In separate remarks, including an interview at the...

A woman was shot outside of CIA headquarters in McLean, Virginia, early Thursday after she crashed into a gate, authorities say. She was shot by security guards, a person familiar with the matter told NBC News. The shooting is “non-fatal,” police said, and an investigation by the CIA and FBI is underway. Fairfax County officers responded to the 900 block of Dolley Madison Boulevard at about 4 a.m. to help CIA police with traffic control, county police said. The woman who crashed into the gate was preliminarily identified as 27-year-old Monia Spadaro, two senior law enforcement officials briefed on the...

A non-fatal shooting was reported outside CIA headquarters in McLean, Virginia, Thursday morning, the Fairfax Police Department said. The incident happened around 4:00 a.m., a police spokesperson said. "The main gate is currently closed, employees should seek alternative routes," a CIA spokesperson said. "Additional details will be made available as appropriate." Fairfax police said officers are in the area to direct traffic while the CIA conducts their investigation. There are no road closures at this time.

A U.S. district judge has allowed the CIA to proceed with firing its top physician, who had previously sought a restraining order against the agency, Politico reported. Last week, the CIA dismissed Dr. Terry Adirim, who had served in a top medical role in the Department of Defense and was known in conservative circles as being the "architect" of the Biden administration's COVID-19 vaccine mandate for military service members. In 2024, Adirim was recruited by the CIA to serve as director of the agency's Center for Global Health Services. Her hiring evoked the ire of Ivan Raiklin, a former Green...

One of the least understood dynamics about how the DC silos operate, pertains to review and investigative work done by government officials into government misconduct. In essence, special counsels, special investigators and appointed special prosecutors do not look at government activity if that activity can be framed as political. The silos protect themselves from external review.As a consequence, the only administrative review of government misconduct happens when the silos look internally at their own agency. In this short video below Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard outlines that 11 internal investigations are ongoing to target Intelligence Community officials, staff and...

Scott Pelley’s 60 Minutes segment on Sunday started with a disclaimer, as if he knew the segment critical of President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at curtailing frivolous political lawsuits was a more than a tad biased. “It was nearly impossible to get anyone on camera for this story, because of the fear now running through our system of justice,” Pelley explained. What he actually meant is likely that CBS leadership didn’t insist that he offer a balanced segment by finding credible sources on both sides of the topic. When Pelley introduced Democrat operative Marc Elias, the disclaimer made sense....

Former senior defense official Dr. Terry Adirim, who was behind the unconstitutional military vaccine mandate, was reportedly fired from her position in February 2025 shortly after President Trump took office. Dr. Terry Adirim, a senior CIA official and former Defense Department official under Joe Biden, was fired by the Trump Administration after she caused so much harm and damage to the US military and thousands of military men and women who refused to take the COVID jab. Dr. Terry Adirim left her position on February 25 to “pursue other opportunities” outside the department, according to an internal memo sent by...

The CIA plans to cut 1,200 positions, along with thousands more from other parts of the U.S. intelligence community.... The administration recently informed lawmakers on Capitol Hill that it intends to reduce the CIA’s workforce by about 1,200 personnel over several years and cut thousands more from other parts of the U.S. intelligence community, including at the National Security Agency...