Two new government reports have confirmed what many Americans have long suspected. A powerful group inside the government and other institutions—often called the “deep state”—has worked to influence elections and silence voices they disagree with. These reports were made public by Senator Chuck Grassley and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. Together, they show how people in government used their power to shape public opinion and interfere with the democratic process.
The first report, known as the Durham annex, was released by Sen. Grassley. The second came from Tulsi Gabbard’s office at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). Both reports include newly declassified information. That means this information was once secret but is now open to the public. The documents describe how intelligence agencies, media outlets, nonprofit groups, and even private law firms worked together to push certain political messages—especially during the 2016 and 2020 elections.
One key moment took place on December 9, 2016. Just a month after President Trump won the election, the Obama White House called a meeting with top intelligence officials. According to Gabbard’s report, these officials were told to shape their public reports in a way that made it seem like Russia had helped Trump win. This happened even though the intelligence community had no proof that Russia had changed any votes. Instead of reporting the facts as they were, agencies like the CIA and FBI were told to fit a specific political story.
This political message was then spread through a network of organizations. Think tanks like the Atlantic Council and the Carnegie Endowment were told about Hillary Clinton’s plan to link Trump to Russia. These groups helped push the story into the media. The media would then report on these stories as if they were coming from independent sources, even though they were all part of the same effort.
The reports also show how government agencies used their powers to spy on Americans. They used tools that were meant for tracking foreign threats, not U.S. citizens. The FBI used the now-discredited Steele dossier—paid for by the Clinton campaign—to get permission to spy on people connected to Trump. This was done through a special court called FISA, which is supposed to protect Americans from illegal surveillance. In one case, an FBI lawyer even changed an email to make the spying seem legal.
This pattern repeated itself during the 2020 election. When the New York Post broke the story about Hunter Biden’s laptop, over 50 former intelligence officials signed a letter calling it “Russian disinformation.” Their claim had no proof, but it helped social media platforms and news outlets block the story. Later, it was confirmed that the laptop was real. But by then, the damage had been done. The story had been suppressed during a critical time before the election.
These new reports show that the “deep state” is not just a conspiracy theory. It is a network of people and institutions that share the same political goals. They used their positions of power to control what the public sees and hears. They worked behind the scenes to shape the outcome of elections and silence opposing views.
The American people were not told the full truth in 2016 or 2020. These documents show that key players in government and media worked together to protect their own interests. This raises serious questions about the future of free speech, fair elections, and the role of federal agencies in our democracy.
Now that these facts are public, the next steps are up to Congress and the American people. If left unchallenged, the deep state will continue to grow stronger. But if exposed and reined in, the country can move toward a future where elections are fair, and all voices can be heard.
