President Trump said Tuesday he expects Russia will try to interfere in the upcoming midterm elections in a way that boosts congressional Democrats, because “no president has been tougher on Russia.”
“I’m very concerned that Russia will be fighting very hard to have an impact on the upcoming Election,” Trump tweeted Tuesday. “Based on the fact that no President has been rougher on Russia than me, they will be pushing very hard for the Democrats. They definitely don’t want Trump!”
I’m very concerned that Russia will be fighting very hard to have an impact on the upcoming Election. Based on the fact that no President has been tougher on Russia than me, they will be pushing very hard for the Democrats. They definitely don’t want Trump!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 24, 2018
Trump made that prediction just days after the president told reporters he misspoke during a press conference with Russian leader Vladimir Putin when he suggested he did not believe Moscow meddled in the 2016 presidential election.
U.S. officials have warned of Russian attempts to undermine the November midterm elections, though the intelligence community has avoided saying if such activities are intended to benefit or harm one political party over the other.
“We have seen Russian activities and intentions to have an impact on the next election cycle,” then-CIA Director Mike Pompeo told the Senate Intelligence Committee in February.
Trump issued a clarification last week stating that he agrees with U.S. intelligence assessments regarding Russia’s cyber activities and election meddling. In a subsequent interview with CBS, the president said he also accepts his intelligence chief’s assertion that the threat of election interference is ongoing.
“If he says that, I would accept that. I will tell you, though, it better not be. It better not be,” Trump said.
