President Trump addresses possible election meddling from Iran, China
FILE – In this June 29, 2019, file photo, U.S. President Donald Trump, left, shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Osaka, western Japan. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 9:40 AM PT — Saturday, August 8, 2020
In the wake of a newly released report, which outlined foreign threats to the upcoming elections, President Trump has promised to protect the integrity of our ballots against outside actors.
The president’s reassurance came in response to a press release from William Evanina, who serves as the director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Centre. According to the document, intelligence agencies have determined China, Russia and Iran are likely carrying out efforts to disrupt November’s presidential election.
The NCSC director claimed that Iran and China are both actively seeking to block a second Trump presidency, while Russia is mostly directing its efforts to “denigrate former Vice President Joe Biden.”
President Trump has rejected allegations of Russia’s involvement.
“Well, I don’t care what anybody says. Nobody with any common sense would do it. Look at what we’ve done with our military. Look at what we’ve done in exposing the pipeline with billions of dollars going to Russia. Look at all of the things we’ve done with NATO, where I’ve raised $130 billion a year from countries that were delinquent. Now they’re paying all of this money,…and that’s all money to protect against Russia.” – Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020. (Alexei Nikolsky, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
However, the president seemed to agree with Evanina’s analysis of Iran and China’s reasons to support a Biden presidency.
Iran’s ayatollah regime reportedly hopes to put an end to President Trump’s time at the White House. According to the document, the country believes a second Trump term would result in more sanctions and continued pressure for regime change in the Islamic Republic.
China’s actions, on the other hand, reportedly came in response to the president’s recent efforts to mitigate the country’s various abuses, including its global surveillance efforts, suppression of minorities and pro-democracy activists, and its mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“You started off with Russia. Why don’t you start off with China? I think China’s maybe a bigger threat. …The report said Iran also, but you didn’t say that Iran would love to see much. Iran would love to see me not be president. …The last thing that Russia wants, China wants, Iran wants would be for Donald Trump to win.” – Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States
FILE – In this June 3, 2020, file image released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei addresses the nation in a televised speech marking the anniversary of the 1989 death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, in Tehran, Iran. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)
When asked about defensive measures against these threats, the president highlighted his commitment to preserving the integrity of elections. He asserted his administration would remain vigilant against foreign attempts at unlawful intervention in the process.
He also reiterated his concerns over how mail-in voting could facilitate manipulation by bad actors.
“The biggest risk that we have is mail-in ballots,” added President Trump. “It is a much easier thing for a foreign power, whether it’s Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, many other countries you wouldn’t expect, …to cheat with universal mail-in ballots.”