The national security adviser dismissed claims that the Russians are interfering in the 2020 election and trying to help President Trump get re-elected, saying he hasn’t seen any “intelligence” supporting the allegations.
“I haven’t seen any intelligence to support the reports that were leaked out of the House. But it’s just hard to comment on that because, again, I wasn’t there,” Robert O’Brien told CBS News’ “Face the Nation” in an interview that will air Sunday. “And these are leaks that were coming from a House Intel Committee hearing. I haven’t seen any intelligence that would back up what I’m reading in the papers.”
Intelligence officials earlier this month briefed bipartisan members of the committee about Russian meddling in the upcoming election, but Republicans reportedly asked about the evidence at the basis of the assessment.
“From what I understand about the report … I get this second hand, but from Republican congressmen that were in the committee, there was no intelligence behind it,” O’Brien said.
The briefing incensed Trump who blamed Democrats in Congress for launching another “misinformation campaign” that Russia prefers him over the “Do Nothing Democrat candidates,” and suggested they would try to weaponize the information.
The Kremlin has denied it’s working on Trump’s behalf.
Director of National Intelligence Robert Maguire on Friday resigned after the intelligence officials briefed the lawmakers, including Rep. Adam Schiff, the California Democrat who spearheaded the impeachment inquiry in the House.
Trump appointed Richard Grenell, the US ambassador to Germany, to take his place as acting director.
The president said Maguire’s “time came up” because he was serving in an acting capacity and would have “had to leave on March 11.”
He also said he has yet to decide on a permanent replacement.
“We have four or five people that are great – very respected. In the meantime, we have our ambassador to Germany who is a very smart person and he’s doing a very good job,” Trump said Sunday at the White House.
The US intelligence community has concluded that Moscow interfered in the 2016 presidential election by using social media sites to sow discord, create divisions among the political parties and spread disinformation.
