President Donald Trump has directed the CIA and other U.S. intelligence agencies to give classified election-related intelligence to Kurt Olsen, a former Trump campaign lawyer who helped lead post-2020 election challenges and was later hired by the administration to investigate the 2020 election. A CIA spokesperson said the agency is ensuring Olsen has the access needed, and the White House argued the president can grant classified access as he sees fit.
The story notes growing Democratic and legal-expert concern that revisiting 2020 fraud claims could be used to justify greater federal control over election administration. It also reports that an FBI search at Fulton County, Georgia’s election hub (including seizure of ballots and voter records) stemmed from Olsen’s request, and that Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard attended the search—an unusual move for the nation’s top intelligence official. The article also recounts prior court sanctions upheld against Olsen in litigation connected to Kari Lake’s 2022 election challenge, and highlights congressional Democrats’ criticism that sharing sensitive intelligence with an election denier risks national security.