FBI Agrees With CIA That Russia Hacked Election To Benefit Trump

Last week the CIA released a report saying that it concluded Russia had carried out cyber attacks in an effort to disrupt the US's presidential election and tip the scales to benefit Donald Trump. Following an earlier request from President Obama for an investigation into the matter, the FBI now agrees with the CIA's assessment, as does the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Citing an internal CIA memo, the Washington Post reports that FBI director James Comey has endorsed the CIA's assessment, along with Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, meaning the US's three main intelligence agencies are now in agreement. The memo, from CIA Director John Brennan, read as follows:

Earlier this week, I met separately with (Director) FBI James Comey and DNI Jim Clapper, and there is strong consensus among us on the scope, nature, and intent of Russian interference in our presidential election.

The three of us also agree that our organizations, along with others, need to focus on completing the thorough review of this issue that has been directed by President Obama and which is being led by the DNI.

The CIA's investigation found that Russian government hackers had a clear goal of helping Trump win the election. These cyber attacks weren't attempts to tamper with election results, but rather the hackers stole data from both the Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee, but only the latter's was made public.

The full details of the CIA's report are of course classified, but when it first made news, some Republican lawmakers tried to argue that the FBI wouldn't necessarily agree with the assessment. Trump, meanwhile, continues to spout that his election had nothing to do with Russian involvement.

SOURCE Washington Post