The CIA Says Russia Intervened For Trump

47:28

December 12, 2016

The CIA says Moscow intervened in behalf of Donald Trump. We’ll look at the evidence and implications.

The U.S. on Oct. 7 blamed the Russian government for the hacking of political sites and accused Moscow of trying to interfere with the upcoming presidential election. (Alexei Nikolsky/AP) — On Oct. 7 the U.S. blamed the Russian government for the hacking of political sites and accused Moscow of trying to interfere with the upcoming presidential election. (Alexei Nikolsky/AP)

U.S. intelligence agencies had already made plain that Russia was interfering in the U.S. presidential election. Now the CIA has gone further. To a super-sensitive conclusion: that Russian hackers intervened in the U.S. presidential election to specifically advantage Donald Trump. To help him get elected. Trump calls the CIA’s report ridiculous. A bipartisan group of Senators say the cyberattacks have cut to the heart of our free society. This hour On Point: the vote, Donald Trump, and Russia. — Tom Ashbrook

Guests

Mark Mazzetti, covers national security for the New York Times. (@MarkMazzettiNYT)

Michael Crowley, senior foreign affairs correspondent for POLITICO. (@michaelcrowley)

Patrick Tucker, technology editor at Defense One. Has been closely following the election hacking story. (@DefTechPat)

Michael DeBonis, covers Congress and national politics for The Washington Post. (@mikedebonis)

From Tom's Reading List

New York Times: C.I.A. Judgement on Russia Built on Swell of Evidence — "American spy and law enforcement agencies were united in the belief, in the weeks before the presidential election, that the Russian government had deployed computer hackers to sow chaos during the campaign. But they had conflicting views about the specific goals of the subterfuge."

CBS News: Kellyanne Conway defends Donald Trump's response to Russia hacking stories — "Kellyanne Conway on Sunday defended President-elect Donald Trump’s response to the confirmation from intelligence officials that Russia worked to influence the 2016 election in favor of Mr. Trump, saying the stories are just an attempt to “relitigate” the results from Election Day."

Wall Street Journal: Donald Trump Fuels Rift With CIA Over Russian Hack — "President-elect Donald Trump escalated a fight with the U.S. intelligence community on Sunday by denouncing its findings of Russian meddling in the U.S. election, setting up an extraordinary rupture between a soon-to-be president and his national-security establishment."

This program aired on December 12, 2016.