Declassified Documents: Whistleblower Met Schiff Staff Before 2019 Complaint

Eric Ciaramella was involved in internal Obama White House discussions over Burisma and Hunter Biden. The former inspector general fast-tracked the whistleblower complaint that led to the first impeachment of President Trump in 2019.

The former inspector general determined the whistleblower's complaint was a matter of urgent concern that appeared credible. IG Michael Atkinson did not question the whistleblower's political motivations, truthfulness, or credibility.

Atkinson conducted no investigation of the whistleblower's interactions with Schiff staffers to see if political bias played a role in the preparation of his complaint.

Michael Atkinson formally notified Schiff of the complaint in September 2019. Michael Atkinson transmitted the information to Schiff over the objections of then-acting National Intelligence Director Joseph Maguire. Joseph Maguire had a legal opinion from the Department of Justice which overruled Atkinson's determination that the complaint was credible and urgent enough to warrant disclosure to Congress.

In a Sept. Atkinson called then-FBI Director Christopher Wray's chief of staff and briefed him on the complaint before filing a criminal referral with the bureau to investigate the allegations. Atkinson testified about the whistleblower and his complaint during a classified session held on Oct.

4, 2019. During the Oct. The two committee briefings spanned more than 10 hours and were conducted behind closed doors in a secure underground facility in the Capitol. Atkinson refused to disclose the identity of the whistleblower even in a classified setting.

Atkinson said he felt compelled to honor the whistleblower's request for confidentiality even though the inspector general has the authority to disclose such information in the course of an investigation. Atkinson noted that getting the intelligence committees to investigate the Trump allegations is what the whistleblower intends to do.

The documents are said to relate to an ongoing Justice Department investigation into potential misconduct by former officials during the 2019 impeachment process.