US intel head suggests Russia behind DNC hacks, says Moscow tried to affect elections in past
From the post:
The US director of national intelligence has suggested Russia is behind the recent hack that saw Democratic National Committee (DNC) records dumped online. The leak undermined the Democrats’ reputation ahead of November’s presidential election.
“It’s probably not real, real clear whether there’s influence in terms of an outcome [of the upcoming elections] – or what I worry about more, frankly – is just the sowing the seeds of doubt, where doubt is cast on the whole [election] process,” James Clapper said on Tuesday evening at an event hosted by the Washington Post, as cited by the Wall Street Journal.
Furthermore, the intelligence chief said Russia and its predecessor the USSR had been adhering to similar practices targeting the US since the 1960s.
“There’s a tradition in Russia of interfering with elections, their own and others.
“[…] It shouldn’t come as a big shock to people. I think it’s more dramatic maybe because now they have the cyber tools,” Clapper is cited as saying.
The comments come in contrast to Clapper’s earlier statements regarding Russia’s alleged connection to the hacking operation, which is believed to have been conducted over more than a year. In July, shortly after the documents had been leaked, he urged an end to the “reactionary mode” of blaming the leak on Russia.
… (emphasis in original)
Do you wonder why Clapper shifted from avoiding a “reactionary mode” of blaming Russia to not only blaming Russia, but claiming a history of Russian interference with United States elections?
I don’t have an email or recorded phone conversation smoking gun, but here’s one possible explanation:
From FiveThirtyEight as of today:
My prediction: The closer the odds become from FiveThirtyEight, the more frantic and far-fetched the lies from James Clapper will become.
Another DNC leak or two (real ones, not the discarded hard drive kind), and Clapper will be warning of Russian influence in county government and school board elections.
PS: If you don’t think Clapper is intentionally lying, when will you break the story his accounts have lost all connection to a reality shared by others?