Trump claims fired cybersecurity expert Chris Krebs was 'excoriated' during his Senate hearing. He wasn't.


President Trump is once again trying to discredit his former cybersecurity expert Christopher Krebs.
After Krebs, who Trump fired last month after he debunked claims and conspiracies voter fraud in 2020 election, testified for the Senate, the president tweeted that Krebs was "excoriated" by Republicans on the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee. But as a publicly available livestream of the hearing made clear, that's just not what happened.
It's true that parts of Krebs' hearing got a little heated, like when committee chair Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) inflated claims of election fraud and ranking member Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) called him out for "running down a rabbit hole" of "false allegations."
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.
But the closest thing to an attack on Krebs came when Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said the former official didn't have standing to claim this was "the most secure election in history," at least when it comes to domestic threats to the election. There were claims of fraud spread in Trump supporters' lawsuits, but Attorney General William Barr affirmed they didn't significantly affect the election.
And overall, Krebs spent most of the hearing doing what got him fired: making it clear there was no evidence widespread fraud or illegal voting took place in the 2020 election and altered its results.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
Judge: Nazis treated better than Trump deportees
speed read U.S. District Judge James Boasberg reaffirmed his order barring President Donald Trump from deporting alleged Venezuelan gang members
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Video games to play this spring, from 'Split Fiction' to 'South of Midnight'
The Week Recommends A meta co-op game puts you in a game within a game, and a life simulator that can compete with the 'Sims' franchise
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
'There is a certain kind of strength in refusing to concede error'
instant opinion 'Opinion, comment and editorials of the day'
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
Turkey arrests Istanbul mayor, a top Erdogan rival
Speed Read Protests erupted in Turkey after authorities detained Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Israel strikes Gaza, breaking ceasefire
Speed Read 326 Palestinians were killed in the first major attack since Netanyahu's government signed a ceasefire agreement with Hamas
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Houthis vow retaliation amid US airstrikes
Speed Read Trump promises the US will use 'overwhelming lethal force' against the Houthis until they stop attacking Red Sea ships
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Pakistan train hostage standoff ends in bloodshed
Speed Read Pakistan's military stormed a train hijacked by separatist militants, killing 33 attackers and rescuing hundreds of hostages
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Arab leaders embrace Egypt's Gaza rebuilding plan
Speed Read The $53 billion proposal would rebuild Gaza without displacing Palestinian residents
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published