2016. United States Presidential Election Interference. (In Progress)
Russia Is A Terrorist State: Part 4 (2016-2019)
2016. United States Presidential Election Interference. (In Progress)
"NWomen's March 1196" by Edward Kimmel from Takoma Park, MD under CC BY-SA 2.0
In July 2016, POLITICO published an article titled "Why Putin hates Hillary," which explored the reasons behind Russian President Vladimir Putin's dislike of then-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. The article cited Clinton's support for anti-Putin protests in Russia, her support for Ukraine, and her role as Secretary of State during the Obama administration's imposition of sanctions on Russia over its annexation of Crimea. The article speculated that Putin might prefer a Trump presidency, as Trump had expressed pro-Russian sentiments and had signaled a willingness to improve relations with Russia.
The next article, published in WIRED in August 2016, focuses on the role played by WikiLeaks in the election. It discusses how the organization was once seen as a champion of free speech and transparency but had become a tool for Russian intelligence agencies to spread propaganda and interfere in the election. The article also highlights how the organization's founder, Julian Assange, had gone from a hero to a villain in the eyes of many.
In November 2016, Vox published an article about WikiLeaks' behavior during the election. The article criticizes the organization's attempt to justify its actions in a bizarre Election Day statement. It argues that WikiLeaks' actions during the election had compromised its reputation as an objective source of information.
In April 2017, NBC News published an article about a dinner attended by former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The article suggests that Flynn had been paid to attend the event and that his presence there raised questions about his relationship with Russia. The meeting may have been part of a larger effort by the Trump campaign to establish connections with Russia.
Published in June 2017, NBC News focused on Paul Manafort's role in Ukraine. The article details how Manafort, who served as Trump's campaign chairman, had worked as a political consultant in Ukraine and had been involved in lobbying efforts on behalf of pro-Russian politicians.
In November 2017, The Atlantic published an article detailing secret correspondence between Donald Trump Jr. and WikiLeaks during the election. The article revealed that Trump Jr. had communicated with WikiLeaks via Twitter and that the organization had suggested several ways in which the Trump campaign could benefit from its leaks.
The same day, NPR also published an article about the correspondence between Trump Jr. and WikiLeaks. The article highlights the messages exchanged between the two and raises questions about the Trump campaign's possible collusion with WikiLeaks.
Also in November 2017, Insider published an article highlighting instances where Trump had praised WikiLeaks during his 2016 election campaign. The article suggests that Trump's praise of the organization may have contributed to its increased prominence during the election, detailing five times during the election campaign when President Donald Trump had praised WikiLeaks for its leaks of Clinton campaign emails.
In December 2017, the Los Angeles Times published an article about Jared Kushner's involvement with Moscow. The article details how Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, had contacts with Russian officials during the campaign and transition period, including his contacts with Russian officials and his role in organizing a meeting between Donald Trump Jr. and a Russian lawyer.
Later that month, Reuters reported that WikiLeaks was facing US probes into its role in the 2016 election and its release of CIA documents. The article suggested that the organization may have played a larger role in the election than previously thought.
In January 2019, the Federal Bureau of Investigation published a document detailing Russian interference in the 2016 US Presidential Election. The report provides insight into the tactics used by Russian intelligence agencies to interfere in the election.
In March 2019, the US Department of Justice published a report on the investigation into Russian interference in the election. The report provides a detailed account of the investigation and its findings.
In April 2019, NBC News reported that the Trump campaign had planned for a WikiLeaks dump and had tried to acquire Clinton emails. The report suggests that the Trump campaign may have been more involved in WikiLeaks' activities than previously known.
On February 19, 2020, The Guardian reported that U.S. President Donald Trump had offered to pardon Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, if he denied Russia’s involvement in the 2016 Democratic National Committee email leak. According to the report, the offer was conveyed to Assange’s lawyers by Trump ally Dana Rohrabacher. The White House and Rohrabacher both denied the allegation, while Assange’s lawyers did not comment. The story added another twist to the complicated relationship between Trump, Assange, and Russia.
In April 2020, the Senate Intelligence Committee endorsed the U.S. intelligence community’s assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. election to help Trump. The committee’s report found that the Trump campaign sought to gain political advantage from the hacked emails, and that Paul Manafort, Trump’s former campaign chairman, provided internal polling data to a Russian associate who passed it along to Russian intelligence. The report also said that the Trump campaign was willing to accept Russian help and expected to benefit from it.
A June 2020 study published by the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy identified a Russian disinformation campaign that had operated for six years, mostly in the shadows, and had aimed to disrupt Western democracies. The campaign was found to have spread propaganda on social media, targeting the U.S., U.K., and Canada. The study found that the Russian campaign had two main objectives: to undermine public trust in democratic institutions and to exacerbate social divisions.
Finally, in August 2020, the Senate Intelligence Committee released two reports detailing its findings on Russia’s interference in the 2016 election. The reports concluded that Russian operatives used social media to spread disinformation and sow discord among Americans, and that the Trump campaign sought to benefit from the Kremlin’s efforts. The reports also revealed that Manafort, who had previously been sentenced to prison for financial crimes related to his work in Ukraine, had shared internal campaign information with a Russian associate. Additionally, the reports confirmed that WikiLeaks played a significant role in the election, and that Russian intelligence services used the organization to disseminate hacked emails.