Dems Seek 9/11-Style Commission for ‘Russia Hacks’

Sen. Cardin: 'No Question That Russia Attacked Us'

by Jason Ditz, 

Democrats from both the House and Senate are pushing a new bill called the “Protecting our Democracy Act,” which seeks to established a 9/11-style commission of 12 bipartisan members to investigate allegations of Russian hacking against Democratic Party targets ahead of the vote.

The effort reflects the partisan nature of the Russian hacking allegations, with the Clinton campaign claiming throughout the election that Russia was “hacking the vote” to ensure Trump would win. The Obama Administration has endorsed Clinton campaign claims, but has not offered any public evidence to support this, simply releasing multiple intelligence reports which all claim it to be the case without offering anything in the way of proof.

Sen. Ben Cardin (D – MD), one of the leading proponents of the bill, insisted there was “no question that Russia attacked us” and that an independent inquiry was necessary. Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway insisted that there was no need for such a probe into the allegations.

The bill in the Senate has 10 sponsors, while the House version is reportedly co-sponsored by every single Democrat in the House. No Republicans in either body have endorsed the bill, however, meaning it is very unlikely the resolution will pass.

The Republican leadership in the House and Senate have both talked up the idea of Congressional investigations into the hacking allegations, and those are likely to remain their main focus, with such a commission risking to derail Congressional inquiries.