On April 13-15, 2026, DNI Tulsi Gabbard declassified documents from Trump's 2019 impeachment proceedings and sent criminal referrals to the DOJ targeting both the whistleblower whose complaint triggered the impeachment and former Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson, who deemed the complaint credible.
The declassified materials include transcripts of Atkinson's closed-door testimony before the House Intelligence Committee. ODNI claims the documents show the whistleblower lied about contact with Democrats before filing the complaint, and that Atkinson relied on secondhand evidence and “failed to conduct basic due diligence.” However, CBS News, CNN, and MSNBC all reported the documents “do not provide any direct evidence of criminal wrongdoing.”
The criminal referral is broad — it refers “information that may constitute possible criminal activity” but does not specify which statutes were violated. When asked what laws were broken, Gabbard said: “I'm leaving it up to the lawyers and the Department of Justice.”
The underlying impeachment facts remain unchanged: Trump's own released call transcript showed him asking Zelensky to investigate Biden. The case was built on direct testimony from Lt. Col. Vindman, Ambassador Taylor, and Ambassador Sondland — not on the whistleblower complaint alone.
On April 14, Trump shared an article by his former impeachment lawyer Alan Dershowitz suggesting the impeachment could be “expunged,” writing: “Alan, one of the greats, should do it!” Newsweek rated the expungement claim “Misleading” — no legal mechanism exists. Constitutional scholar Jonathan Turley: “It is not like a constitutional DUI. Once you are impeached, you are impeached.”
Rep. Jim Himes (ranking Democrat, Intelligence Committee): “This will amount to nothing because no misconduct occurred, but what it will do is chill future whistleblowers from coming forward. I suspect that is precisely the point.”
The irony: Gabbard herself is currently the subject of a whistleblower complaint alleging she restricted a classified intelligence report involving Kushner and Iran for political purposes.