Exclusive: Clinton Plans Long In The Making

New details have emerged regarding a highly classified intelligence memorandum relating to alleged plans by Hillary Clinton to tie Trump to Russian hackers. As Sleuth News previously covered, the memorandum was originally created by Russian intelligence and forwarded to the CIA by the Dutch, who had infiltrated Russian groups.

According to sources familiar with the matter, the memorandum is based on an email sent in March 2016 from Jennifer Palmieri, a senior official in Hillary Clinton’s campaign, to Leonard Bernardo, a Democrat operative with ties to the party’s leadership employed by George Soros’ Open Society Foundations. This email, sources claim, outlined a strategic plan that included leveraging the FBI to amplify allegations of Russian collusion against then-candidate Donald Trump, weeks before the Russians are alleged to have hacked the Democratic National Committee.

The latest report builds on Sleuth News’ earlier reporting and adds to 2023 reporting by the New York Times which took note of Special Counsel Durham’s inquiries relating to Bernardo. The Times report also suggested, without evidence, that US officials viewed the intelligence memorandums as Russian disinformation, and offered no explanation for why the Russians would have moved to cut off Dutch access if the memorandums were in fact a disinformation product.

For Special Counsel Durham’s part, he found no evidence of any attempt by the FBI to vet the intelligence:

As previously noted, Bernardo is also allegedly tied to the Renteria memo, involving an agreement memorialized in an email from Debbie Wasserman Schultz to Bernardo, which outlined an alleged conversation between Attorney General Loretta Lynch and staffer Amanda Renteria where Lynch agreed not to let the investigation into Clinton’s email server progress too far.

Jennifer Palmieri was previously known to be tied to an email released by Wikileaks which notes a February 2016 “swift boat plan”, further buttressing the core elements of the alleged Russian intelligence memorandums:

According to Sleuth News sources, Palmieri is the foreign policy advisor referenced in John Ratcliffe’s declassified memorandum regarding Clinton’s approval of a plan to tie Trump to Russian hackers.

The Durham report offers a few short paragraphs on Palmieri:

Due to the highly classified nature of the Clinton plan intelligence, Palmieri was not confronted with the intelligence memorandums, but she was asked about the substance of them, specifically relating to the scheme to have the FBI amplify their smear campaign allegations.

The revelation adds a layer of complexity to the already contentious narrative surrounding the 2016 election. The CIA received multiple reports from Dutch intelligence, including the memorandum in question, and it was briefed to top U.S. officials including President Obama and FBI Director James Comey. The reporting was left unpursued at the same time the FBI was steaming full speed into investigating associates of Donald Trump.

As reported by the New York Times, Judge Beryl Howell refused to allow the Durham team pursue the matter or obtain additional information.

Sources indicate to Sleuth News that declassification of the memorandums is considered highly unlikely, despite the questions they raise. Sleuth News continues to investigate and expects to publish additional exclusive stories soon.