“The Department of Homeland Security did not adequately follow its internal processes and comply with applicable Intelligence Community policy standards and requirements when editing and disseminating an Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A) intelligence product regarding Russian interference in the 2020 U.S. Presidential election. For example, I&A employees during the review and clearance process changed the product’s scope by making changes that appear to be based in part on political considerations, potentially impacting I&A’s compliance with Intelligence Community policy. Additionally, the Acting Secretary participated in the review process multiple times despite lacking any formal role in reviewing the product, resulting in the delay of its dissemination on at least one occasion,” says the top of a Department of Homeland Security Inspector General’s report titled “DHS Actions Related to an I&A Intelligence Product Deviated from Standard Procedures.”

The whole thing is pretty dense, but basically it appears to center on Acting Secretary Chad Wolf’s pushing various buttons to slow things down because the Orange God Emperor freaked out every time someone would mention Russian election interference, stating that Wolf “asked during the July 8 meeting that the intelligence product be ”held’ because it ‘made the President look bad,” we made a specific effort to understand what occurred during the meeting… it is clear the Acting Secretary asked the Acting USIA to hold the product from its pending release. We interviewed the Acting USIA, who told us the Acting Secretary asked the product be held because it made President Trump look bad and hurt President Trump’s campaign – the concept that Russia was denigrating candidate Biden would be used against President Trump. The Acting USIA also told us he took contemporaneous notes of the meeting, a copy of which we obtained. The notes… read ‘AS1 – will hurt POTUS – kill it per his authorities.’ The Acting USIA told us these notes meant that the Acting Secretary told him to hold the product because it would hurt President Trump.”