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Trump Downplays Suspected Russia-led Hack

Jeff Seldin

   U.S. President Donald Trump is downplaying the severity of a massive
   cybersecurity breach by suspected Russian operatives that has exposed
   the networks of government agencies and private sector companies,
   contradicting the assertions of his secretary of state and lawmakers
   briefed on the matter.

   After days of silence, Trump took to Twitter on Saturday for his first
   comments on the hack, which is thought to have impacted at least 18,000
   customers of SolarWinds, a Texas-based software management company.
   Those affected include the Energy, Treasury and Commerce departments,
   as well as state and local governments.

   But unlike intelligence officials and lawmakers, who warned that damage
   from the breach was ongoing, the president said that "everything is
   well under control."

   "I have been fully briefed," he wrote. "The Cyber Hack is far greater
   in the Fake News Media than in actuality."

   Trump also cast doubt on comments late Friday by Secretary of State
   Mike Pompeo, who said it appeared that Russia was responsible.

     The Cyber Hack is far greater in the Fake News Media than in
     actuality. I have been fully briefed and everything is well under
     control. Russia, Russia, Russia is the priority chant when anything
     happens because Lamestream is, for mostly financial reasons,
     petrified of....
     -- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) [1]December 19, 2020

   "Russia, Russia, Russia is the priority chant when anything happens
   because Lamestream is, for mostly financial reasons, petrified of
   discussing the possibility that it may be China," Trump said.

   He also suggested the cyber breach might have impacted November's
   presidential election, which he lost to former U.S. Vice President Joe
   Biden.

   "There could also have been a hit on our ridiculous voting machines
   during the election, which is now obvious that I won big, making it an
   even more corrupted embarrassment for the USA," Trump added.

   Less than 24 hours earlier, Pompeo told The Mark Levin Show that while
   intelligence agencies were still examining the hack, all evidence
   pointed to the Kremlin.

   "This was a very significant effort, and I think it's the case that now
   we can say pretty clearly that it was the Russians that engaged in this
   activity," Pompeo said.

References

   1. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1340333618691002368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

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