Mike Pompeo says he has 'no doubt' that Putin intended to destabilize American democracy
President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for CIA director, Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.), confirmed Thursday that "everything I've seen suggests" the intelligence community's report on the Russian hacking "is an analytical product that is sound."
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) pushed Pompeo further: "In your personal opinion, are Vladimir Putin and the Russians looking at all of this and saying, 'We've done a really good job of creating chaos, division, instability in the American political process'?" he asked.
"I have no doubt that the discourse that's been taking place is something that Vladimir Putin would look at and say, 'Wow, that was among the objectives that I had,'" Pompeo agreed. "It shouldn't surprise any of us at all that the leadership inside of Russia views this as something that might well redound to their benefit." Jeva Lange
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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