Trump Says Russia Hacking Investigation a ‘Political Witch Hunt’

Insists Hacking Had 'No Effect' on Vote's Outcome

by Jason Ditz,

In comments to the New York Times, President-elect Donald Trump addressed the ongoing accusations of Russia hacking the US election, and investigations into the matter, saying they amounted to “a political witch hunt,” and insisting not enough attention is being paid to hacks officials blamed on China.

Trump was “briefed” by US intelligence on the hacking allegations today, though the publicly released report by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence offered no evidence to support the claims, and Trump came out of private briefings still doubting the conclusions.

One thing Trump was confident about it that the hacking, whoever did it, had “no effect” on the outcome of the vote. The declassified report declined to even speculate on the possibility of this, insisting US spy agencies aren’t supposed to speculate on who Americans vote for and why.

Trump also urged the House and Senate Intelligence Communities to look into top secret intelligence reports related to the hacking accusations being shared with NBC News. Trump did not specify exactly which NBC receipt of top secret information he was focused on, and they’ve repeatedly come up with new classified information, like claims Russian President Vladimir Putin “personally” directed the hacks.