Chad Wolf, acting secretary at Homeland Security, tells Senators that Russia, and only Russia, is actively engaged in election interference.
Wolf also told senators that the U.S. faces threats of election interference from Russia, China and Iran and that “Russia looks to denigrate former Vice President Biden.” Wolf said there’s no current intelligence proving that Iran or China have yet carried out attacks.
Bloomberg
We emphasize “and only Russia” because Donald Trump and Republicans continue to use an August report from the National Counterintelligence and Security Center to claim China and Iran are interfering in the election.
That report only said that China and Iran have a reason to prefer Joe Biden, not that they are trying to influence the outcome in November. The report also detailed how Republicans are working directly with Russia (which explains why Trump’s Director of National Intelligence released a Russian disinformation document on the public).
Wolf’s admission of Russian interference comes while his future in government is being questioned by Congress, as well as a federal judge who found that he is likely in his position illegally.
In May, Wolf ordered a DHS staffer to cease all reporting of Russian interference. The staffer was demoted for refusing to cooperate.
In July, Wolf blocked the release of an Intelligence warning about Russian interference.
In August, he received an internal warning for violating the federal Hatch Act during the Republican National Convention.
Earlier in September, we found out that Russia is behind Trump’s mail-in voting conspiracy and is paying freelance U.S. journalists to write for a fake news website. That was before a judge ruled that he’s most likely illegally assuming his position at DHS.
After the whistleblower complaint, the House subpoenaed Wolf.
It’s fair to say that the change in Chad Wolf’s tune on Russia is the result of the added pressure.
Sources
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-23/white-supremacists-top-terrorist-threats-within-u-s-wolf-says
https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/14/politics/judge-chad-wolf/index.html
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/27/dhs-chad-wolf-rnc-hatch-act-warning-403567
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/11/dhs-chad-wolf-subpoenaed-412750
Photo: Public Domain
