The CIA knew the Russiagate narrative was false from the very beginning
After all, their own marble framework tools were used to manufacture it.
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They had failed connect Wikileaks to Russia whatsoever, despite monumental effort.
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This led to the Senate Intelligence Committee, under pressure from the CIA, to sneak through the word salad designation of "Non-state Hostile Foreign Entity" (which is purposefully broad and ill defined and can be applied to literally anyone who criticizes the US Government) in the language of the Intelligence Authorization bill.
This gave the CIA the go-ahead to treat the publishing organization who had exposed the war crimes of the US Government as a hostile foreign entity, even though they clearly were not.
This led to the active planning of murdering/kidnapping Assange and his family.
The CIA stalked his fiancée and infant children, drew out sketches for how to kill them, and went so far as to steal their diapers out of her trash to attempt to prove they were illegitimate.