‘Just one of the many ways that the election was rigged and stolen’: Trump responds to bombshell Columbia Journalism Review of Steele Dossier

Donald Trump slammed the media for its failings over the notorious Steele Dossier, following an 18-month investigation by the Columbia Journalism Review, claiming it led to his 2020 presidential loss. 

The report, published Monday, details shortcomings in the media’s coverage of Christopher Steele’s dossier linking Trump’s 2016 campaign to Russia.  

Taking to Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump said the report highlighted the failings of the mainstream media and that it ‘had a huge impact on the 2020 presidential election, just one of the many ways that the elections was rigged and stolen.’ 

The former president added: ‘This proves, once again, that the corrupt, woke, radical Democrats stole the 2020 Election, making it impossible for that fact to be called “The Big Lie,” as the Marxists and Communists in our country attempt to portray it.’ 

The Steele Dossier was a collection of allegations collected by former MI6 agent Christopher Steele, from sources in eastern Europe. The claims ranged from details of alleged cooperation between the 2016 Trump campaign and Moscow, to lurid assertions about Trump and Russian prostitutes.

The dossier compiled by former MI6 agent Christopher Steele (pictured) detailed the Trump campaign’s alleged cooperation with Moscow in 2016. Many of the key details in the dossier have since been debunked 

The work was funded by the Clinton campaign and became an open secret in Washington circles by the end of 2016, before Buzzfeed News published it in full in January 2017. 

An investigation into the dossier revealed Steele’s ‘primary’ source claimed the former agent had exaggerated or misstated details and that his own information was based on ‘rumor and speculation.’  

And since it was published, many key details have been debunked, with the Columbia Journalism Review summarizing the episode as a failing of the modern media. 

Trump wrote about the review on Truth Social: ‘It is a STAGGERING, detailed account of the lies, disinformation, and complete lack of journalistic integrity exhibited by the purveyors of Fake News at the Washington Compost (sometimes known as the Washington Post), the Failing New York Times, and many others.’ 

Despite the debunked allegations in the dossier, the U.S. intelligence community did share its broad assessment that Moscow intervened in the 2016 election to help Trump. 

And while Trump boasts that the Columbia Journalism Review echoed his claims that the 2020 election was stolen, the report focuses on the 2016 election, which Trump won against Hilary Clinton. 

Trump took to Truth Social to reiterate his claim that the 2020 presidential election was stolen as he highlighted the Columbia Journalism Review report 

Veteran journalist Bob Woodward described how reporters failed to heed his warnings over the now-debunked Steele Dossier, with disastrous consequences

Mentions of the 2020 election were mostly in regards to interviews with Trump where he reiterated the false claims when speaking to the reporters for his reaction. 

Famed Watergate reporter Bob Woodward also condemned the media’s reporting and revealed in a new interview how Washington Post reporters were overtaken by the excitement of Russiagate investigations and failed to heed his warnings. 

The result, Woodward said, was that readers were ultimately ‘cheated’ by the coverage of Trump’s ties to Russia.

He made his comments in a lengthy investigation into the media handling of the biggest story of the Trump presidency.

‘Bob Woodward, of the Post, told me that news coverage of the Russia inquiry “wasn’t handled well” and that he thought viewers and readers had been “cheated,”‘ wrote Jeff Gerth for the Columbia Journalism Review.

‘He urged newsrooms to “walk down the painful road of introspection.”‘