Fox News host Jesse Watters has deleted a social media clip that claimed the CIA conducted a raid on the office of Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, following a swift denial from the DNI's office.
During a Wednesday episode of Jesse Watters Primetime, Watters reported that “the CIA just raided Tulsi Gabbard’s office,” alleging that “agents hauled out dozens of boxes, thousands of files on the JFK assassination and MK Ultra, the CIA mind-control operation, which she was in the process of declassifying.” He cited an interview with GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (Fla.) on NewsNation, The Hill’s broadcast partner.
Shortly after the clip circulated, DNI spokesperson Olivia Coleman publicly refuted the claim, writing on social media that the “CIA did not raid the DNI’s office” and that the Fox report was “false.” The Hill has reached out to Fox News for comment.
In her NewsNation interview with Katie Pavlich, Luna said she was “just notified” that CIA agents “went in and took documents out of ODNI.” She linked the files to the JFK assassination and MK-ULTRA, the CIA’s behavioral modification program. Luna, who chairs the House Oversight Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets, said she contacted the White House and CIA Director John Ratcliffe about the incident.
“The CIA does not have jurisdiction to work against an executive order by the president, and so the fact that someone did this when the president is out of country, and from what I gather I believe Director Ratcliffe is with him, and so this seems like it was an internal coup, to be honest,” Luna told NewsNation.
Later, in a social media post, Luna issued a clarification: “Clarification: Took documents that ODNI has jurisdiction over. Also, this did not happen today & was not a ‘raid’ however it did take place and we are just being made aware of it based on reporting etc.”
On Wednesday, Luna and Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) visited CIA headquarters to view the “files in question taken from ODNI.” Burlison said in a follow-up post that the visit was meant to “deliver a message” that “this is a new era.” He wrote, “This president is demanding disclosure, and we wanted assurances that they are understanding of that and on the same page. That message was received and we expect to be able to see all of the files for JFK and MK ultra, etc. and we await these actions. I am grateful that the CIA met with us so quickly. But trust is a series of promises kept.”
The incident adds to ongoing tensions over intelligence transparency. In a related development, the ODNI has previously denied an FBI raid on Gabbard's office, calling it fake news. Meanwhile, broader debates over declassification and executive authority continue, with some analysts warning that Trump's 'Republican Socialism' breaks with conservatism.
