When it comes to reports that U.S. officials have informed a few 2020 presidential campaigns that Russia is allegedly trying to interfere in the election, former Congressman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) is saying he doesn’t believe Russia would want President Donald Trump over Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).
Lawmakers were reportedly briefed by intelligence officials on Feb. 13 that Russia is trying to interfere in the 2020 presidential election in hopes of re-electing Trump, as The Washington Post reported.
In response, Gowdy told Fox News on Friday, “Number one, I don’t know anyone who really thinks that Russia prefers Donald Trump to win over ‘comrade’ Sanders.”
“I don’t know a soul that really thinks Russia wants Donald Trump to be the president instead of the guy that honeymooned in Russia,” he added.
“Number two, is this the same intelligence community that told us it was a spontaneous reaction to a video in Libya and the same intelligence community that promised us weapons of mass destruction, and the same intelligence community that relied on the dossier?”
As IJR previously reported, Russia has denied interference in the 2020 election. Trump also called the reports a “misinformation campaign” that is “being launched by Democrats in Congress saying that Russia prefers me to any of the Do Nothing Democrat candidates,” he claimed.
See Gowdy’s comments below (starting at 3:00):
Gowdy added:
“They gather information, and they make assessments. Then they give those assessments, but unfortunately, you give them to people like Adam Schiff who leak like sieves. This never should have been made public, and that’s why the president is upset — not at what the intelligence community found but the fact that Adam Schiff has a beeline to The New York Times when it’s negative information about Donald Trump.”
Additionally, as The Washington Post reported, 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful Sanders was briefed by the U.S. officials that Russia was trying to interfere in helping his campaign.
However, in response, the Vermont senator said in a statement, “I don’t care, frankly, who [Russian President Vladimir] Putin wants to be president. My message to Putin is clear: Stay out of American elections, and as president I will make sure that you do.”
Sanders continued, “In 2016, Russia used Internet propaganda to sow division in our country, and my understanding is that they are doing it again in 2020. Some of the ugly stuff on the Internet attributed to our campaign may well not be coming from real supporters.”
https://twitter.com/Mike2020/status/1230990526381465606
One of Sanders’ 2020 Democratic political rivals, Michael Bloomberg, didn’t stay silent on the news, as he appeared to respond to it when he tweeted “feel the burn” in Russian afterward. Bloomberg’s comments come as tensions have increased among the 2020 Democratic presidential hopefuls.
