Bipartisan Senate Verdict: Kremlin Helped Trump In 2016

Reprinted with permission from AlterNet.

The Senate Intelligence Committee on Wednesday split from their colleagues on the House Intelligence Committee, agreeing with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election to help then-candidate Donald Trump and hurt Hillary Clinton.

The announcement of the completed review of the Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) on Russian activities in the 2016 U.S. elections was announced in a press release from committee chairman Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) on Wednesday.

“We so no reason to dispute the [IC] conclusions,” Burr said. “There is no doubt that Russia undertook an unprecedented effort to interfere with out 2016 elections.

Committee vice chairman Mark Warner (D-CA) agreed the ICA conclusions “were accurate and on point,” adding Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the interference himself “for the purpose of helping Donald Trump and hurting Hillary Clinton.”

The Senate intel committee’s conclusions are markedly different than those reached by the House Intelligence Committee, led by Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA). In a 250-page report, House Republicans said they came to “concurrence with the Intelligence Community Assessment’s judgments, except with respect to Putin’s supposed preference for candidate Trump.”

Senate Intel Cmte Chair @SenatorBurr: “Committee staff have spent 14 months reviewing the sources, tradecraft, and analytic work (of the ICA findings on Russian meddling in #2016), and we see no reason to dispute the conclusions.”

(cc: @DevinNunes) pic.twitter.com/T03TmtBuvb

— Frank Thorp V (@frankthorp) May 16, 2018