Trump accuses Obama of treason, annotated | CNN Politics

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office on Tuesday. Kent Nishimura / Reuters

 Analysis by Zachary B. Wolf, CNN

4 min read, Updated 10:04 AM EDT, Wed July 23, 2025, 02:58

Trump pivots Epstein question into attack on Obama

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CNN  — Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard on Friday released a slew of documents that she said implicate members of the Obama administration for “treasonous” behavior during the 2016 election.

The claims confuse the allegation that Russia interfered in the 2016 election with the idea that Russia actively tried to change results by hacking into voting systems. CNN’s Jeremy Herb and Katie Bo Lillis went through them and talked to people who worked on a bipartisan Senate review of the 2016 election.

“Wildly misleading” is how the information was described by one source in their report.

But that didn’t stop President Donald Trump from accusing former President Barack Obama of treason, a crime punishable by death in the US, when he was asked about it in the Oval Office on Tuesday. Trump made the accusation while appearing at an event to discuss trade with Philippines leader Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Trump’s very long, meandering answer is a window into how his mind works. All roads lead back to immigration and his 2020 election loss.

Obama’s office issued a rare statement in response:

“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,” said spokesman Patrick Rodenbush. “These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction. 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. These findings were affirmed in a 2020 report by the bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee, led by then-Chairman Marco Rubio.”

Here’s a look at what Trump said, along with some context from CNN reporting.

QUESTION from reporter: Tulsi Gabbard has submitted a criminal referral to the Department of Justice. From your perspective, who should the DOJ target as part of their investigation, what specific figures in the Obama administration?

TRUMP: Well, based on what I read, and I read pretty much what you read, it would be President Obama. He started it. And Biden was there with them and (then-FBI Director James) Comey was there and (then-Director of National Intelligence James) Clapper. The whole group was there — (then-CIA Director John) Brennan. They were all there, the — in a room. Right here, this was the room.

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