According to a Homeland Security official, the department was asked to suppress information that President Donald Trump would not like. Per the AP, a whistleblower complaint was filed by Brian Murphy, who alleged that senior officials at DHS wanted him to alter reports so they would reflect the policy goals of the Trump administration. Among the information that he was asked to suppress were details about Russian interference in the 2016 election and the rising threat that white supremacists pose to America.
Murphy also claims that he was demoted after refusing to comply with the changes, as well as for filing confidential internal complaints about the situation. Rep. Adam Schiff — who is chairman of the House Intelligence Committee — released the complaint and stated that allegations are “grave and disturbing.” He also confirmed that Murphy had been asked to give a deposition to Congress as part of an investigation into intelligence collection by the Department of Homeland Security related to its response to protests in Portland, Oregon, and other places. “We will get to the bottom of this, expose any and all misconduct or corruption to the American people, and put a stop to the politicization of intelligence,” Schiff said
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BREAKING: The House Intelligence Committee releases a whistleblower complaint that alleges that senior White House and Department of Homeland Security officials improperly sought to politicize, manipulate, and censor intelligence in order to benefit President Trump politically
— Ayman Mohyeldin (@AymanM) September 9, 2020
In his complaint, Murphy specifically pointed to acting deputy DHS secretary Ken Cuccinelli as the main individual ordering report modifications. “Mr. Cuccinelli expressed frustration with the intelligence reports, and he accused unknown ‘deep state intelligence analysts’ of compiling the intelligence information to undermine President Donald J. Trump’s policy objectives with respect to asylum,” Murphy wrote. He explained that Cuccinelli asked him to embellish threats by left-wing groups in the wake of the death of George Floyd.
Murphy also alleged that acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf instructed him to withhold reports on Russian interference with the election because they “made the president look bad.” Murphy went on to say that, instead of Russia, Wolf directed him to report on interference by China and Iran. In his complaint, he asserts that those instructions came directly from White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien. Murphy stated that, following his refusal to alter the information, he was excluded from future meetings on the subject. The White House does not appear to have commented on the allegations at this time.
