 [Self Reliance Center] The Five Eyes intelligence alliance, comprising the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, is a cooperative network focused on sharing signals intelligence (SIGINT) and other forms ofintelligence to address global security threats. Allegations have surfaced, particularly from sources aligned withformer President Donald Trump, that the Obama administration leveraged this alliance to conduct surveillance onTrump’s 2016 presidential campaign to hinder his electoral success
Background and Allegations
The allegations center on the idea that the Obama administration, particularly through the CIA under Director John Brennan, initiated or encouraged surveillance of Trump’s campaign associates as part of an effort to link them to Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. This narrative, often referred to as "Obamagate" or part of the "Russia Collusion Hoax" by its proponents, suggests that the Five Eyes alliance was used to bypass U.S. legal restrictions on domestic surveillance, allowing foreign intelligence agencies to collect and share information about Trump’s team with U.S. authorities.
Reported Five Eyes Involvement
1. CIA’s Alleged Coordination with Five Eyes:
According to reports from investigative journalists Michael Shellenberger, Matt Taibbi, and Alex Gutentag, published in early 2024, sources claim that the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC), specifically the CIA under John Brennan, "illegally mobilized foreign intelligence agencies" within the Five Eyes alliance to target Trump advisors before the official start of the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane investigation in July 2016. These sources allege that Brennan identified 26 Trump associates for Five Eyes agencies to "bump" (make contact with) or manipulate to gather intelligence or create suspicious interactions that could justify further investigation.
The operation reportedly began as early as 2015, predating the FBI’s formal probe, and involved foreign intelligence services from the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The goal was to collect intelligence on Trump’s team and share it with U.S. agencies, allegedly to circumvent U.S. laws prohibiting domestic spying without proper authorization.
2. GCHQ’s Role and Early Intelligence Sharing:
A 2017 report by The Guardian noted that the UK’s Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), a key Five Eyes member, was among the first to detect contacts between Trump’s inner circle and Russian figures in 2015. GCHQ reportedly picked up these interactions as part of routine surveillance of Russian intelligence assets, not as a targeted operation against Trump. Over the next six months, GCHQ shared this electronic intelligence (SIGINT) with U.S. agencies, including the CIA. Other Five Eyes nations, such as Australia, also relayed material, with Australia’s role tied to a tip from diplomat Alexander Downer about Trump aide George Papadopoulos’s comments on Russian-held material damaging to Hillary Clinton.
Sources cited in the 2024 reports claim this sharing was part of a deliberate effort orchestrated by the Obama administration to build a case against Trump’s campaign, though The Guardian emphasized that GCHQ’s actions were incidental and not specifically aimed at Trump.
3. Australia’s Contribution via Papadopoulos:
In May 2016, Australian diplomat Alexander Downer met with Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos in London. Papadopoulos reportedly mentioned that Russia had damaging information on Hillary Clinton. Downer relayed this to Australian intelligence, which shared it with U.S. authorities, contributing to the FBI’s decision to open Crossfire Hurricane. Proponents of the spying narrative argue this was a setup, with Five Eyes allies like Australia acting on U.S. prompting to entrap Papadopoulos and justify surveillance.
4. Bypassing U.S. Legal Constraints:
The allegations suggest that the Obama administration used Five Eyes to conduct surveillance that would be illegal for U.S. agencies to perform without court approval, such as a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant. By having foreign allies collect and share intelligence, the CIA and other U.S. agencies could access information on U.S. citizens (Trump’s associates) without violating domestic laws. This is described as "reverse targeting," where foreign surveillance indirectly collects data on Americans.
A 2024 WorldNetDaily article cites sources claiming that this operation was a "grave threat to our nation’s sovereignty" and involved "unprecedented collusion" to influence the 2016 election.
5. The "Binder" of Declassified Intelligence:
Sources referenced in the 2024 reports claim that a 10-inch binder of raw intelligence, ordered declassified by Trump at the end of his first term, contains details about the FBI’s investigation and the broader IC’s surveillance of his campaign, including Five Eyes activities. This binder allegedly holds proof of illegal actions by U.S. and foreign intelligence services. The significance of this binder is highlighted by claims that the FBI’s 2022 Mar-a-Lago raid may have aimed to recover it to protect implicated agencies, both American and foreign.
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