A newly declassified report from the House Intelligence Committee alleges that the 2016 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) under President Barack Obama used the discredited Steele Dossier as part of its basis for concluding that Russian President Vladimir Putin aspired to help Donald Trump win the 2016 election.
The report challenges public claims by top intelligence officials, including then-CIA Director John Brennan, who had previously denied that the dossier was incorporated into the assessment.
The report was released on Tuesday by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
It had been classified by the CIA for years and contains findings originally developed under the Republican-led committee chaired by then-Rep. Devin Nunes of California.
The analysis accuses the ICA of ignoring and selectively quoting reliable intelligence that contradicted the conclusion that Putin favored Trump over Hillary Clinton.
It further claims the ICA failed to consider alternative explanations and improperly elevated unsupported claims to the level of high-confidence assessments.
“The judgment that Putin developed a ‘clear preference’ for candidate Trump and ‘aspired to help his chances of victory’ did not adhere to the tenets of the ICD (Intelligence Community Directive) analytical standards,” the report states.
The declassified report follows the opening of a criminal conspiracy investigation by FBI Director Kash Patel, examining whether the intelligence and law enforcement agencies violated federal law between 2016 and 2024.
Multiple criminal referrals have reportedly been sent to the Department of Justice, led by Attorney General Pam Bondi.
According to the House report, then-FBI Director James Comey and Deputy Director Andrew McCabe advocated for including the Steele Dossier in the ICA, despite internal opposition.
The document, compiled by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, was funded by the Clinton campaign through Fusion GPS.
The dossier was added to the ICA as an annex.
A review conducted by Deputy CIA Director for Analysis John Ratcliffe concluded that the decision to include the Steele Dossier “ran counter to fundamental tradecraft principles and ultimately undermined the credibility of a key judgment.”
Ratcliffe later issued a criminal referral against Brennan following this internal CIA review.
Brennan testified in 2023 before the House Judiciary Committee, stating that the CIA opposed inclusion of the dossier.
Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper testified the same month, claiming the dossier was not used to reach conclusions in the ICA.
However, the House report cites evidence that a two-page summary of the Steele Dossier was included as “Annex A” in the most highly classified version of the ICA.
The report also claims that CIA analysts warned Brennan that inclusion of the dossier risked discrediting the entire product.
Brennan allegedly rejected requests from two senior CIA officers to exclude the document, reportedly saying, “Yes, but doesn’t it ring true?”
The ICA, which was directed by Obama and overseen by Brennan, Clapper, and Comey, concluded in December 2016 that Putin ordered an influence campaign to harm Clinton and help Trump.
While the CIA and FBI expressed “high confidence,” the NSA, under Admiral Mike Rogers, expressed only “moderate confidence” in that assessment.
The newly released report argues that Putin may have preferred Clinton to win, believing she would be a weaker and more predictable president.
The report cites intelligence indicating that damaging information on Clinton was held back by Moscow, potentially to be used later to undermine her administration.
“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,” the report states.
The declassified document also argues that the ICA misrepresented the Steele Dossier by referring to it as an FBI source, despite the fact that Steele had been terminated by the FBI for lying.
It further criticizes the ICA for failing to vet Steele’s sources or clarify the political motivations behind the dossier’s funding.
The FBI offered Steele up to $1 million to verify the claims in his reporting, but Steele was unable to do so. The dossier became central to the FBI’s FISA surveillance of Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.
The report references prior findings from DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz, who identified at least 17 “significant errors and omissions” in the FISA process.
Horowitz also noted that Steele’s main source, Igor Danchenko, contradicted key claims in the dossier and was investigated by the FBI over alleged ties to Russian intelligence.
Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation ultimately concluded there was no evidence of a criminal conspiracy between Trump and Russia.
A subsequent report from Special Counsel John Durham in 2023 determined that the FBI had failed to corroborate any major allegation in the Steele Dossier.
The House report concludes that the ICA’s portrayal of Putin’s intent was unsupported by reliable intelligence.
It argues that Russian influence efforts were likely aimed at undermining confidence in the U.S. electoral process rather than supporting one candidate over the other.
“The ICA offered no reliable intelligence that indicated or implied that Putin issued orders to conduct influence operations that denigrated Clinton with the goal of electing Trump,” the report states.
The analysis raises questions about whether the ICA’s inclusion of the dossier and its conclusions regarding Putin’s alleged support for Trump were politically motivated.
Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Ark., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, sent a letter to President Trump urging him to review the findings, stating the report “exposes the truth about the politically driven Obama-era assessment.
