Donald Trump has said the CIA’s conclusion that Russia interfered in the presidential election is “ridiculous” and being used by Democrats as “just another excuse” for his defeat of Hillary Clinton.
The president-elect told Fox News Sunday that he did not necessarily oppose Barack Obama’s order for a review of campaign-season cyber-attacks.
But he added that in any such effort, “you should not just say ‘Russia’. You should say other countries also, and maybe other individuals.”
The Obama administration has said the review is not just about Russia or the election. The White House says the report will look at other election-year incidents, including 2008 and 2012 cyber-attacks linked to Chinese hackers.
Trump has long said the culprit for such attacks could be China or just a hacker sitting on a couch. The CIA has concluded with “high confidence” that Russia sought to influence the US election on behalf of the Republican.
The Republican president-elect also questioned whether the CIA was behind the reports that indicated Moscow wanted him in the White House. “I think the Democrats are putting it out,” he said.
Two leading Republican voices on foreign policy in the Senate, John McCain and Lindsey Graham, joined two Democratic senators on Sunday in expressing concern over the reports on Russian interference and saying it could not become a partisan issue.
“For years, foreign adversaries have directed cyber attacks at America’s physical, economic, and military infrastructure, while stealing our intellectual property,” the senators, including Democrats Chuck Schumer and Jack Reed, said in a statement.
“Now our democratic institutions have been targeted. Recent reports of Russian interference in our election should alarm every American.”
US intelligence agencies have told Congress and the Obama administration Russia has grown increasingly aggressive in Syria and Ukraine and has stepped up activities in cyberspace.
“This cannot become a partisan issue,” the senators said. “The stakes are too high for our country.”
Trump’s chief of staff, however, said it was “insane” to suggest that Russian hacking influenced the outcome of the election and added that the Russians “didn’t tell Hillary Clinton to ignore Wisconsin and Michigan”.
Reince Priebus told ABC’s This Week that Clinton “ignored states that she shouldn’t have, and Donald Trump was the change agent … Donald Trump won in an electoral landslide that had nothing to do with the Russians.”
McCain and Graham are among those senators who will likely play key roles in any confirmation hearing for Rex Tillerson, the Exxon Mobil chief executive who was said by Trump aides speaking anonymously on Saturday to be the most likely pick for secretary of state.
Tillerson is close to Russian president Vladimir Putin, who gave him Russia’s highest award in 2013, has done extensive business in Russia, and has spoken out against sanctions imposed after the annexation of Crimea and aggression in eastern Ukraine.
Praising Tillerson in his interview with Fox News Sunday, Trump said: “To me a great advantage is that he knows many of the players in the world and he knows them well.”
He added: “He does massive deals in Russia not for himself, but for the company.”
Speaking to CNN on Saturday, McCain said: “I have obviously concerns about his relationship with Vladimir Putin, who is a thug and a murderer, but obviously we will have hearings on that issue and other issues concerning him will be examined and then it’s the time to make up your mind on whether to vote yes or no.”
“The fact that he has a relationship with Vladimir Putin and other across the globe is not something we should be embarrassed by,” said Priebus on ABC. “I think it would be an advantage for the United States.”
Priebus said that although the final choice had not been made, he had no concern about a confirmation for Tillerson, who he said was “incredibly talented and would do an incredible job as secretary of state”.