CIA's Pompeo says Russia and others trying to undermine U.S. elections

[webfact]

CIA's Pompeo says Russia and others trying to undermine U.S. elections

 

CIA Director Mike Pompeo speaks at the FDD National Security Summit in Washington, U.S., October 19, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The head of the Central Intelligence Agency said on Sunday that Russia and others are trying to undermine elections in the United States, the next major one being in November when Republicans will try to keep control of Congress.

 

U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election to try to help President Donald Trump win, in part by hacking and releasing emails embarrassing to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and spreading social media propaganda.

 

CIA Director Mike Pompeo told CBS that the Russian interference is longstanding, and continues. Asked on "Face the Nation" if Moscow is currently trying to undermine U.S. elections, Pompeo responded: "Yes sir, have been for decades."

 

"Yes, I continue to be concerned, not only about the Russians, but about others' efforts as well," Pompeo said, without giving details. "We have many foes who want to undermine Western democracy."

 

Moscow denies any meddling in the 2016 elections to help Republican Trump win. U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller is investigating whether any crimes were committed. Two Trump associates, former national security adviser Michael Flynn and campaign aide George Papadopoulos have pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents in the probe. Trump denies any campaign collusion with Russia.

 

Trump has at times suggested that he accepts the U.S. intelligence agencies' assessment that Russia sought to interfere in the election but at other times has said he accepts Russian President Vladimir Putin's denials that Moscow meddled.

 

Trump has frequently spoken of wanting to improve relations with Putin, even though Russia has frustrated U.S. policy in Syria and Ukraine and done little to help Washington in its standoff with North Korea.

 

Pompeo told CBS that the CIA had an important function as a part of the national security team to keep U.S. elections secure and democratic. "We are working diligently to do that. So we're going to work against the Russians or any others who threaten that very outcome," he said.

 

Trump said on Saturday that he planned an active year on the campaign trail on behalf of Republican candidates running in the mid-term elections, in which all of the House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate will be up for election. Republicans hold majorities in both.

 

(Reporting by Susan Cornwell; editing by Grant McCool)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-01-08

 

[George Bowman]

As an American I don't see what the problem is. Regardless, of any countries interference it is still up to John Q. Public to think and use common sense before deciding and voting.

 

Wait a minute, I see the problem...

[punchjudy]

The Ruskies have successfully managed to turn things around and get the west on the back foot.

[Silurian]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election to try to help President Donald Trump win, in part by hacking and releasing emails embarrassing to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and spreading social media propaganda.

 

Huh, imagine that. Wow, that is like totally out of the blue. Strange I never heard this before...oh wait, I have.

 

It has gone from "no the Russians didn't do anything" to "who cares if they did, it is no big deal". I guess the next step is to openly welcome Russians help during elections. Heck why not! Time to rewrite what is considered treasonous or not.

 

Edited January 8, 2018 by Silurian

[lockyv7]

wonder it the Americans ever meddeled in any other countries elections. 

[boomerangutang]

There's a relatively new science experiment which slows down the speed of light.

Maybe Pompeo got his head in the beam of that experiment, and it slowed down his thinking.  He's announcing now, what US intel, Mother Jones mag, and many Americans have known for 16 months.

 

Wall St. Journal did a detailed study recently, of how many fake email accounts were commenting on federal policies (emailed comments sent to Wash DC dept's re; proposed policies).  Fully 40% of the hundred randomly picked emails they tested turned out to be fake - generated by bots or from accounts of dead people, or from real people who didn't actually write/send those emails, a.k.a. hijacked US accounts.  Also, a large portion were generated from bots located in Russia.  

 

Here's how that happens:  Trump proposes a policy.  Opinion polls show his policy is widely unpopular among Americans, usually 70+% against (like the recent internet restriction legislation which only big businesses liked).  Trump sheeple like Kushner (remember; he was in charge of Trump's internet stuff during the campaign) get Russian-based bots cranked up to send tens of thousands of fake emails (to federal agencies) to bolster Trump's position.   

 

  

[boomerangutang]

16 minutes ago, lockyv7 said:

wonder it the Americans ever meddeled in any other countries elections. 

Yes, and prior American administrations did worse than meddle, .....they assassinated elected leaders and so on.   However, that doesn't justify what Russia did in 2016, is doing now or in the future,  ....nor does the sins of past presidents (Reagan, Nixon, etc) justify what other foreign entities (China, ISIS, or whomever) might do in the future.

 

The sins of the fathers should not taint newer generations.  

[FitnessHealthTravel]

Blah, blah.blah!!! As if the freakin CIA can point fingers. The USA is so, so boring!

[ilostmypassword]

43 minutes ago, FitnessHealthTravel said:

Blah, blah.blah!!! As if the freakin CIA can point fingers. The USA is so, so boring!

And yet, here you are drawn to boredom. Bizarre.

[Baerboxer]

1 hour ago, ilostmypassword said:

And yet, here you are drawn to boredom. Bizarre.

 

But he's right, the CIA have, presumably under instructions from the administration in power at the time, and over many years, interfered in the governments, governing, economies and freedoms of many other nations. 

 

And that's the point isn't it? Rather than your attempted deflection? And are they claiming this wasn't the case in the past? That no one attempted to influence any previous elections? Ah, but, this is the one where they didn't really like the result!

[Shaunduhpostman]

Where is the evidence that they meddled? Not that I would claim to know what is really going on...but one has to wonder.

 

I find it highly interesting that all this caterwauling about the Russians coincides with when much about the Democrats meddling with the primary elections emerges. The DNC likely  murdered Seth Rich for leaking what they were doing meddling with the elections. Hillary gets away with all kinds of irregularities with her leaking and apparently providing an open door to her emails. If you look into it all, it boggles the mind what she did and got away with.

 

Then the Clinton Foundation accepts bribes from the Russian nuclear energy commission just prior to Russia's gaining control of  30% of the U.S. uranium via a company that turns out is bought out by a group that is made up of high ranking members of the Russian Nuclear Energy branch of government. 

 

But none of this is in the news and barely ever was, yet we still get these hyenas seemingly weekly howling about the Russians influencing the elections. It really begs the question, did anything happen, or by saying it happened for   whole year straight makes it real and make it something that happened?

 

If I am not mistaken the RT Youtube channel, probably about the best mainstream news out there, is labelled a Russian instrument for meddling. So basically, providing people with intelligent commentary, better detail and better coverage on world news events is meddling. This whole thing is utterly sickening.

Edited January 8, 2018 by Shaunduhpostman

[boomerangutang]

1 hour ago, Shaunduhpostman said:

Where is the evidence that they meddled?

Here are a few tips of the proverbial iceberg:

>>>   hundreds of vindictive tweets and FB fake news articles during 2016. Many or most were generated from accounts in Russia and former East Bloc countries.  Many were also re-tweeted and circulated by right wing dirty tricksters and Trump himself.

 

>>>  many of the FB fake stories were paid by rubles.

 

>>>  many fake FB accounts were created - with the purpose of showering anti-HRC fake news with 'likes'.  How many?  We don't know.  hundreds of thousands?  Millions?  Indeed, fake/multiple accounts and bots are still active today, polluting the internet.

>>>  A dirty trickster working for the Republicans ADMITTED to posting hundreds of fake news stories which denigrated HRC during the campaign.  He's just one of hundreds/thousands who packed the internet with ugly crap - to benefit the Trump campaign.

>>>  Not all the fake news stories attacked HRC.  Some praised Trump.  I was a recipient of one which listed 10 charitable things Trump had done.  It so happens the things listed never happened.  Note: none of the dirty tricks campaigns were aimed at harming Trump, and none (that I've heard of) were designed to help HRC.  All were aimed to assist Trump.

>>>   At least one of the main internet players from Russia has started speaking of his role.  There will be others.  Gucifer2 and Roger Stone will get outed.  Stay tuned.  We ain't seen nothin' yet.  The things I listed here are but a tiny glimpse of the avalanche to come.

 

 

 

Edited January 8, 2018 by boomerangutang

[Shaunduhpostman]

22 hours ago, boomerangutang said:

Here are a few tips of the proverbial iceberg:

>>>   hundreds of vindictive tweets and FB fake news articles during 2016. Many or most were generated from accounts in Russia and former East Bloc countries.  Many were also re-tweeted and circulated by right wing dirty tricksters and Trump himself.

 

>>>  many of the FB fake stories were paid by rubles.

 

>>>  many fake FB accounts were created - with the purpose of showering anti-HRC fake news with 'likes'.  How many?  We don't know.  hundreds of thousands?  Millions?  Indeed, fake/multiple accounts and bots are still active today, polluting the internet.

>>>  A dirty trickster working for the Republicans ADMITTED to posting hundreds of fake news stories which denigrated HRC during the campaign.  He's just one of hundreds/thousands who packed the internet with ugly crap - to benefit the Trump campaign.

>>>  Not all the fake news stories attacked HRC.  Some praised Trump.  I was a recipient of one which listed 10 charitable things Trump had done.  It so happens the things listed never happened.  Note: none of the dirty tricks campaigns were aimed at harming Trump, and none (that I've heard of) were designed to help HRC.  All were aimed to assist Trump.

>>>   At least one of the main internet players from Russia has started speaking of his role.  There will be others.  Gucifer2 and Roger Stone will get outed.  Stay tuned.  We ain't seen nothin' yet.  The things I listed here are but a tiny glimpse of the avalanche to come.

 

 

 

From what I have gathered over the last few years, it seems The U.S. govt, itself engages in the same practices Russia is being accused of. Govt. employees are shilling on every web board you wanna talk about. Its rather common knowledge at this point, is it not, that employees working for the Pentagram, the DNC, the Republicans  various concerned and vested interests, you name it,  trolling and shilling and "meddling" with the discourse on issues being discussed between regular people. Everyone has been doing it for years, it is just part of the territory when you talk about the internet and social media.

 

Apparently its OK for the US or say CNN, Verizon or Monsanto to shill for their interests  but Russia is supposed to just politely stay in the background and not say anything. What Russia is doing is trivial level meddling compared to direct election fraud that the very accusers of the Russians were engaging in during the last presidential elections. People can make up their own minds when given enough correct information, it is not direct meddling and arguably within the confines of free speech for Russians to post on the internet, especially since the US Govt does that. Perhaps therein lies the problem however, Americans are starved of information and intelligent opinion in the main stream media and this is what our handlers would have, but perhaps we are too weak to stand up and argue with these shills from Moscow. Its a joke, a bloody ironic joke.

 

That the DNC had 12 impending court cases in 12 states for election fraud last the whole issue fell off of the radar screen doesn't seem to bother anyone enough. Perhaps because people simply don't know about it due to mainstream media not reporting it.  Emails leaked from numerous accounts in the DNC where they discussed the coronation of Hillary, voters and votes be damned. It was found by people in charge of the polling that remote devices and backdoors were in place to meddle with voting technology and voting machines. Voting machine software programming was found to award 1/6th of a vote to Sanders and 1 vote to Clinton was discovered by people at the highest level of polling management in Arizona, to cite just one example. That millions of younger voters were made ineligible to vote in the Democratic primary by legislation railroaded through in New York state at the last minute  is also apparently OK. 

 

The DNC as has the Republican party been shown to be involved with direct meddling with election results of the most nefarious order and it will continue as prosecuting attorneys are murdered (in the case of a case brought against the DNC the state of Florida) and people like Seth Rich who provide the leaks showing the electoral fraud, scheming and media collusion . Shilling on facebook or social media is trivial when compared to the way electoral fraud was orchestrated and failed because people would not accept Hillary as a president even if she were rammed down their throats.

 

The problem of election meddling is clearly a problem of both political parties and the American people thesmselves, least of all a problem created by the Russians. Americans need to look at themselves and stop allowing the DNC and the mainstream media to keep them strung out on blaming others, blaming Trump, blaming Obama, blaming the Russians, blaming the rednecks etc. If people realy want a democracy they have to work and fight and organize for it. The DNC and the system will not hand it to anyone on a platter. The integrity of election system in America was obliterated by the DNC and and the indifference of the American people, not by the Russians. That they want to disengenuously blame Russians, as though we've all forgotten about the DNC hijinks in the last election, or forgotten the way Hillary made her private email server an open source of info about US government business is suspicious on many levels not mention abhorrent.

 

Isn't it convenient that the nuclear warhead arsenal is due for a complete retrofit? It looks more like that is what this is about, not saving a democracy that died in 2001 and was finally buried during the 2016 elections.

[ilostmypassword]

On 1/8/2018 at 6:23 PM, Shaunduhpostman said:

Where is the evidence that they meddled? Not that I would claim to know what is really going on...but one has to wonder.

 

I find it highly interesting that all this caterwauling about the Russians coincides with when much about the Democrats meddling with the primary elections emerges. The DNC likely  murdered Seth Rich for leaking what they were doing meddling with the elections. Hillary gets away with all kinds of irregularities with her leaking and apparently providing an open door to her emails. If you look into it all, it boggles the mind what she did and got away with.

 

Then the Clinton Foundation accepts bribes from the Russian nuclear energy commission just prior to Russia's gaining control of  30% of the U.S. uranium via a company that turns out is bought out by a group that is made up of high ranking members of the Russian Nuclear Energy branch of government. 

 

But none of this is in the news and barely ever was, yet we still get these hyenas seemingly weekly howling about the Russians influencing the elections. It really begs the question, did anything happen, or by saying it happened for   whole year straight makes it real and make it something that happened?

 

If I am not mistaken the RT Youtube channel, probably about the best mainstream news out there, is labelled a Russian instrument for meddling. So basically, providing people with intelligent commentary, better detail and better coverage on world news events is meddling. This whole thing is utterly sickening.

So much nonsense. For one thing, the State Dept only had 1 seat on the board that approved the sale to Russia. So how would a bribe guarantee approval? For another, it didn't give Russia control of the uranium. The company would still have to get permission to export it.

[55Jay]

On 1/8/2018 at 6:14 AM, webfact said:

Asked on "Face the Nation" if Moscow is currently trying to undermine U.S. elections, Pompeo responded: "Yes sir, have been for decades."

And they finally succeeded, thanks to a single moron in the Clinton campaign who's login password was "password".   

 

And Hillary is worried about the nuclear codes......

[sirineou]

 The question is , why wouldn't Russia try to affect elections here and elsewhere? Is there a country in the world that does not to the extent that they can? 

So what are we, and others to do? what do the Russians do when others try to affect their political system?

We and they , Try to prevent it to the extent that they can. 

And what is the first step in such and attempt? First you investigate , you can not mediate a problem unless you know the extent and nature of the problem.  

If the Russians are laughing, it is at our reaction , and particularly  the reaction of the party that benefited by such attempt . 

I have no great love for either the Republicans or for the Democrats but in this instance it is clear that the party that benefited was the Republicans,  I would say the same if the Democrats were in the same situation.

Are we Republicans or Democrats first, or are we Americans? where is are loyalty placed?

will we cut our nose to spite our face?

All those who carry Russia's water should be ashamed and should be embarrassed,

The Russians are laughing at you!!!

[IAMHERE]

On 1/8/2018 at 6:14 AM, webfact said:

"We have many foes who want to undermine Western democracy."

So, getting Trump elected does this?  I'm not sure Trump is against democracy in America.

I hope Putin doesn't like Oprah.

Edited January 12, 2018 by IAMHERE
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