Donald Trump joins Julian Assange to cast doubt over Russian hacking claims in 2016 election
Updated
President-elect Donald Trump is using WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to cast doubt over the US intelligence community's case that Russia was behind hacking affecting the Democrats ahead of the 2016 election.
Key points:
- Donald Trump said the Democrats themselves were to blame for the hacks
- He referenced Julian Assange, in saying a "14-year-old could have hacked Podesta"
- Intelligence community and Democrats insist Russia was responsible
Mr Trump has suggested that the Democrats themselves were to blame for the hacking of its computers and mass emails leaks, including those of top Hillary Clinton adviser John Podesta.
He argued the Democrat National Convention (DNC) did not have a "hacking defence" and questioned why the Democratic Party had not responded "to the terrible things they did and said".
The President-elect appeared to be referring to information in the DNC emails that was made public and led to the resignation of the DNC chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz and other officials.
"Julian Assange said 'a 14-year-old could have hacked Podesta' why was DNC so careless? Also said Russians did not give him the info!" Mr Trump tweeted.
It was a striking spectacle for the incoming president to give credibility to Mr Assange, whose organisation has been under criminal investigation for its role in classified information leaks.
Mr Assange said his source for the hacked emails WikiLeaks published during the campaign was not a government, but his assertion left open the possibility they came from a third party.
The American intelligence community and Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill insisted Russia was behind the hacks, but Mr Trump repeatedly dismissed the allegation, challenging the intelligence experts who will help him make the weightiest possible decisions once he becomes president in two weeks.
The President-elect is expected to be briefed on a report into the hacking Friday by CIA Director John Brennan, FBI Director James Comey and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.
Trump aides have argued Mr Trump's position was not personal, but based on what he saw as incomplete or inconclusive information.
Spokesman Sean Spicer said on Wednesday that Trump had received "raw data" on the hacking during daily intelligence briefings.
But he said the President-elect was "more sceptical of the conclusions that are drawn".
The President-elect has insisted that the Government does not really know who was behind the attacks.
He had said he would release more information this week.
AP
Topics: us-elections, hacking, government-and-politics, world-politics, united-states
First posted
