Senate investigation concludes Russia interfered in election to help Donald Trump - breaking with conclusion of House probe

Wednesday 16 May 2018 20:46 BST


'


A powerful Senate committee has concluded that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to benefit Donald Trump, breaking with the conclusion of a similar House probe.

“There is no doubt that Russia undertook an unprecedented effort to interfere with our 2016 elections,” said Senator Richard Burr, the Republican chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, in a statement issued with Mark Warner, its most senior Democrat.

“The Russian effort was extensive, sophisticated, and ordered by President Putin himself for the purpose of helping Donald Trump and hurting Hillary Clinton.”

The findings of the committee, one of several probes into alleged interference in the election, which has been denied by Russia, were in line with the general conclusion of the US intelligence community.


THEY CONCUR: Senate Intelligence Committee agrees with intelligence community’s assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to help Donald Trump

This contradicts Republicans on House Intelligence Committee




— Kasie Hunt (@kasie) May 16, 2018
“The Russian effort was extensive, sophisticated, and ordered by President Putin himself for the purpose of helping Donald Trump and hurting Hillary Clinton.”

The Senate committee has been investigating Russia’s alleged interference plot for more than a year. It released its findings as Special Counsel Robert Mueller continues his own probe into the issue, along with alleged collusion by the Trump campaign.


The senators met with former NSA director Mike Rogers, former CIA director John Brennan, and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper earlier on Wednesday, The Hill reported.

The committee had also invited former FBI director James Comey to attend, though he ultimately declined