Secretary of State Mike Pompeo testified Wednesday that the Trump administration is “light years” ahead of the Obama administration in its position to prevent and respond to Russian interference in U.S. elections.
“There is a great deal of more work to do,” Pompeo told members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “Having said that, I am incredibly proud of the work that this administration has done in countering Russia. It is light years better than was done in the previous administration.”
“We will not tolerate Russian interference in our 2018 elections,” he added. “Rest assured, we will take the appropriate counter measures in response to the continued Russian efforts.”
Ranking Democrat, Rep. Eliot Engel of New York, asked if Pompeo could vouch that the government has prevented future attacks “on our democracy.”
“No responsible government official would ever state they believe they have done enough to forestall any attack on the United States of America,” Pompeo warned. “We work diligently at it each day … but I’ll never share with you I believe we have accomplished that to 100 percent certainty.”
The top U.S. diplomat — just three weeks into his new position — added the threats America faces are less severe than those of allied nations.
“This administration has taken enormous efforts to push back against Russia that haven’t been done in an awfully long time either here in the United States or frankly, our partners that are even more threatened by Russia,” he said.
