Christopher Steele dossier
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The Christopher Steele dossier is the 2016 opposition-research document alleging ties between Donald Trump and Russia, compiled by Christopher Steele, a former MI6 officer. John Kiriakou says he worked directly with Steele on an operation together in London in the 1990s, and that Steele's standing inside MI6 at the time was exceptional: "he was like the guy at MI6 that all the other MI6 guys wanted to be like. That's how highly respected he was."

Why the dossier went unvetted

Kiriakou's explanation for how the dossier's uncorroborated claims, including the allegation that Trump paid Russian prostitutes to urinate on a Moscow hotel bed once used by the Obamas, reached print rests on the difference between Steele's old institutional role and his later private one. Inside MI6, a raw source report would be passed to analysts who would judge whether it was credible, corroborated, or publishable nonsense. By the time Steele compiled the dossier he had left the service and was working in private practice, where "there is no team of analysts to go over the intelligence" to vet or corroborate a claim before it moves forward.

Funding origin

Kiriakou says reporting at the time indicated Steele's dossier work was initially commissioned by the Ted Cruz presidential campaign, which then walked away from the project; the Clinton campaign subsequently took over funding him. Kiriakou situates this episode within the broader media pattern he calls Russiagate, in which he says outlets treated uncorroborated Trump-Russia claims as established fact.

See also

- MI6
- Russiagate
- John Kiriakou
