Top adviser says Trump is an 'expert' in 'weaving around' the issues


James Woolsey, a former CIA director and an adviser to Donald Trump on national security issues, said Monday that he believes the Russians participated in election-related hacking, and it's quite likely others were involved, too.
"It's often not foolproof to say who it is because it is possible and sometimes easy to hide your tracks," he told CNN's Jim Sciutto. "There's lots of tricks." Despite intelligence agencies saying that Russia is responsible for the politically damaging hacking against Democrats, Trump and many of his aides have cast doubt on that consensus, and when Sciutto asked Woolsey if Trump is playing the media with his comments on culpability, the former CIA chief said maybe, adding that Trump is an "expert in weaving around" on issues. "Sometimes people may have been talking to somebody in the National Security Agency and have an idea that maybe it was one type of hacking rather than another."
A U.S. intelligence official told CNN that the United States has traced the hack to specific keyboards with Cyrillic characters, which were used to construct the malware code. While in the country of Georgia, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) promised that Congress will hold hearings on the cyber attacks when back in session later this month. "It's clear that Russia has attacked the United States of America," he said. "All of our intelligence agencies will affirm that that's been the case. We will work in the Congress to have stronger sanctions in order to prevent further attacks."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Five of the best luxury watches for women
The Week Recommends From iconic heritage designs to bold contemporary reinventions, these elegant timepieces stole the show at Watches and Wonders 2025
-
Bad news, alpha males. You likely don't actually exist.
Under the radar Most primate communities are egalitarian
-
Sudoku hard: July 14, 2025
The Week's daily hard sudoku puzzle
-
Trump set to hit Canada with 35% tariffs
Speed Read The president accused Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney of failing to stop the cross-border flow of fentanyl
-
Mahmoud Khalil files $20M claim over ICE detention
Speed Read This is the 'first damages complaint' brought by an individual targeted by the Trump's administration's 'crackdown' on Gaza war protesters
-
Trump threatens Brazil with 50% tariffs
Speed Read He accused Brazil's current president of leading a 'witch hunt' against far-right former leader Jair Bolsonaro
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling