“Trump Official On Russian Hacking: ‘A National Security Issue'”

Pam Fessler for NPR:

President Trump has shown little interest in fighting the threat of Russians hacking U.S. elections. He’s shown a lot of interest in fighting voter fraud, something he insists — without evidence — is widespread.

Parts of his administration are doing just the opposite.

Bob Kolasky, an acting deputy undersecretary at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), told a group of election officials gathered in Washington, D.C., this week that the threat of Russian hacking in future elections is “a national security issue.”

“We have seen no evidence that the Russian government has changed its intent or changed its capability to cause duress to our election system. That may not be the only concern we have in the future,” Kolasky said, adding that another nation-state or bad actor could also attempt to interfere in U.S. voting….

Election officials say they’ve been privately assured by DHS that administrators there have no plans to get involved in a search for voter fraud, which could jeopardize the working relationship that’s been built up in recent months to address the threat of cyberattacks.

That threat appears to be foremost in many election officials’ minds, according to those speaking at the Washington meeting, which was organized by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

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