Not this again.
Senate Russia report proves Trump collusion was very real. But do voters care?
The Senate Intelligence Committee should be applauded for releasing the fifth and final volume of its
investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
With over 200 witness interviews and roughly 1 million documents reviewed, the
nearly 1,000-page report documents in detail the comprehensive campaign conducted by Russian President Vladimir Putin and his proxies to seek
influence within President Donald Trump's campaign, help Trump win the 2016 presidential election and amplify polarization and division within American society.
Far from a hoax, as the
president so often claimed, the
report reveals how the Trump campaign willingly engaged with Russian operatives implementing the influence effort. For instance, the report exposes interactions and information exchanged between
Russian intelligence officer Konstantin Kilimnik and then-Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. According to the report, campaign figures “presented attractive targets for foreign influence, creating notable counterintelligence vulnerabilities.” (
Manafort was later convicted of tax and bank fraud.)
Concluding
one of the highest-profile congressional investigations in recent memory, the
report also uncovers abuses within the U.S. government’s investigation of this operation. These methods require review and reform.
The bipartisan tone of the majority of the report, released by a committee chaired by Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, should be welcomed by all Americans who want our elected leaders to protect American sovereignty. National security should never be a partisan issue.
Trump was not exonerated by my report, Robert Mueller tells Congress
Mr Mueller said he had not exonerated Mr Trump of obstruction of justice.
The former FBI director spent two years probing alleged collusion between the 2016 Trump campaign and Russia, but did not establish collusion in a crime.
He concluded that Russia had interfered in the election with the intention of benefiting Mr Trump's campaign.
The questions focused largely on Mr Mueller's investigation of President Trump and his decision to say he could not exonerate the president of obstruction of justice, but Mr Mueller repeatedly stressed the importance of concerns over ongoing Russian interference in US democracy.
"Over the course of my career I have seen a number of challenges to our democracy. The Russian government's effort to interfere in our election is among the most serious," he said.
He added: "Much more needs to be done in order to protect against this intrusion, by the Russians but others as well."
