Obama Administration Rushed to Preserve Intelligence of Russian Election Hacking

[Skeptic Ginger]

This will likely end up needing merging with other threads on the same thing, this is a big story.

Obama Administration Rushed to Preserve Intelligence of Russian Election Hacking

WASHINGTON — In the Obama administration’s last days, some White House officials scrambled to spread information about Russian efforts to undermine the presidential election — and about possible contacts between associates of President-elect Donald J. Trump and Russians — across the government. Former American officials say they had two aims: to ensure that such meddling isn’t duplicated in future American or European elections, and to leave a clear trail of intelligence for government investigators.

American allies, including the British and the Dutch, had provided information describing meetings in European cities between Russian officials — and others close to Russia’s president, Vladimir V. Putin — and associates of President-elect Trump, according to three former American officials who requested anonymity in discussing classified intelligence. Separately, American intelligence agencies had intercepted communications of Russian officials, some of them within the Kremlin, discussing contacts with Trump associates.

At the Obama White House, Mr. Trump’s statements stoked fears among some that intelligence could be covered up or destroyed — or its sources exposed — once power changed hands. What followed was a push to preserve the intelligence that underscored the deep anxiety with which the White House and American intelligence agencies had come to view the threat from Moscow.

It also reflected the suspicion among many in the Obama White House that the Trump campaign might have colluded with Russia on election email hacks — a suspicion that American officials say has not been confirmed. Former senior Obama administration officials said that none of the efforts were directed by Mr. Obama.

Further reading:
New Yorker: TRUMP, PUTIN, AND THE NEW COLD WAR - What lay behind Russia’s interference in the 2016 election—and what lies ahead?

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

And now this comes out: Sessions spoke twice with Russian ambassador during Trump’s presidential campaign, Justice officials say

Then-Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) spoke twice last year with Russia’s ambassador to the United States, Justice Department officials said, encounters he did not disclose when asked about possible contacts between members of President Trump’s campaign and representatives of Moscow during Sessions’s confirmation hearing to become attorney general.

One of the meetings was a private conversation between Sessions and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak that took place in September in the senator’s office, at the height of what U.S. intelligence officials say was a Russian cyber campaign to upend the U.S. presidential race.

The previously undisclosed discussions could fuel new congressional calls for the appointment of a special counsel to investigate Russia’s alleged role in the 2016 presidential election. As attorney general, Sessions oversees the Justice Department and the FBI, which have been leading investigations into Russian meddling and any links to Trump’s associates. He has so far resisted calls to recuse himself.

Sessions was asked during his confirmation hearings and he denied he had conversations with the Russians. That included written and oral answers from Sessions.

 

[logger]

It's truly fascinating that no special prosecutors were appointed in Obamas term, even when people died. But because the left lost so badly to a political novice, now there has to be one for talking to a foreign government. And we must ask why? Because only a dumbass like hillary would open up her communications to these foreign countries so they could hack it and cause her to lose. Why did it cause her to lose? Because it showed what a dumbass she is.

 

[plague311]

It's truly fascinating that no special prosecutors were appointed in Obamas term, even when people died. But because the left lost so badly to a political novice, now there has to be one for talking to a foreign government. And we must ask why? Because only a dumbass like hillary would open up her communications to these foreign countries so they could hack it and cause her to lose. Why did it cause her to lose? Because it showed what a dumbass she is.

Even if your hyperbole were true, that's somehow worse than openly communicating with the Russians on how to take down his political opponent? That's some sweet logic there.

 

[BobTheCoward]

It's truly fascinating that no special prosecutors were appointed in Obamas term, even when people died. But because the left lost so badly to a political novice, now there has to be one for talking to a foreign government. And we must ask why? Because only a dumbass like hillary would open up her communications to these foreign countries so they could hack it and cause her to lose. Why did it cause her to lose? Because it showed what a dumbass she is.

I think the obvious reason would be being a bad president is not a crime, therefore people dead because of that isn't criminal.

 

[Aridas]

I think the obvious reason would be being a bad president is not a crime, therefore people dead because of that isn't criminal.

Trump isn't being charged for his bad call that got William Owens killed, at last check, so I'm not sure what logger's talking about, anyways.

 

[The_Animus]

Trump isn't being charged for his bad call that got William Owens killed, at last check, so I'm not sure what logger's talking about, anyways.

Edited by jsfisher: 

<snip> Edited for compliance with rules 0 and 12 of the Membership Agreement.

 

[sunmaster14]

I think the obvious reason would be being a bad president is not a crime, therefore people dead because of that isn't criminal.

Crimes may have been committed in the Fast and Furious operation, and the whole sordid mess only became public when US Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed by a gun bought in the US by a straw buyer and allowed to be "walked" into Mexico (with no heads up to the Mexican authorities, let alone coordination with them). There was no special prosecutor appointed even though Eric Holder was found to have given an egregiously false denial to Congress, which he didn't correct for 11 months, and only corrected because of a whistleblower.

I imagine this is all news to you, as well as to various liberals here. It's not the kind of thing you would have found on the front page of the New York Times or Washington Post.

 

[plague311]

Crimes may have been committed in the Fast and Furious operation, and the whole sordid mess only became public when US Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed by a gun bought in the US by a straw buyer and allowed to be "walked" into Mexico (with no heads up to the Mexican authorities, let alone coordination with them). There was no special prosecutor appointed even though Eric Holder was found to have given an egregiously false denial to Congress, which he didn't correct for 11 months, and only corrected because of a whistleblower.

I imagine this is all news to you, as well as to various liberals here. It's not the kind of thing you would have found on the front page of the New York Times or Washington Post.

Nope, not new at all, just another "but...but...Obama" retort. This might be news to you, as well as to various conservatives here, but Obama isn't President anymore. You need to get over it.

 

[sunmaster14]

Nope, not new at all, just another "but...but...Obama" retort. This might be news to you, as well as to various conservatives here, but Obama isn't President anymore. You need to get over it.

I'm not the one who needs to get over it. I'm very happy with the current political situation.

As for the OP, I think the New York Times article doesn't quite read the way Skeptic Ginger thinks it does. It reads to me as if the outgoing Obama administration did its best to create a vague conspiracy narrative to undermine the legitimacy of the incoming President. It's particularly telling that these same people are evidently leaking to the press about their shenanigans. It pretty much exposes (and proves) their own malfeasance, amirite?

 

[varwoche]

Sessions met with Russian envoy twice last year, encounters he later did not disclose

 

[Aridas]

Crimes may have been committed in the Fast and Furious operation, and the whole sordid mess only became public when US Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed by a gun bought in the US by a straw buyer and allowed to be "walked" into Mexico (with no heads up to the Mexican authorities, let alone coordination with them). There was no special prosecutor appointed even though Eric Holder was found to have given an egregiously false denial to Congress, which he didn't correct for 11 months, and only corrected because of a whistleblower.

I imagine this is all news to you, as well as to various liberals here. It's not the kind of thing you would have found on the front page of the New York Times or Washington Post.

What's new about it? The President's immune to most prosecution, at last check. Personally, just talking about personal experience, I've heard no one, liberal or conservative, even try to defend Fast and Furious... until now, at least, as I took a peek at the WP. Even that, though, was just William Newell, the person who was apparently thought up and was actually in charge of Fast and Furious, talking about how his intentions were good... which isn't much of a defense, really.

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

Sessions met with Russian envoy twice last year, encounters he later did not disclose

Pelosi and Cummings call for Mr shut-the-pot-users-down Sessions to resign.

Cummings calls on Sessions to resign over conversations with Russian ambassador

The Pelosi call is being reported in Tweets. I don't have a link to something more yet.

 

[BobTheCoward]

Crimes may have been committed in the Fast and Furious operation, and the whole sordid mess only became public when US Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed by a gun bought in the US by a straw buyer and allowed to be "walked" into Mexico (with no heads up to the Mexican authorities, let alone coordination with them). There was no special prosecutor appointed even though Eric Holder was found to have given an egregiously false denial to Congress, which he didn't correct for 11 months, and only corrected because of a whistleblower.

I imagine this is all news to you, as well as to various liberals here. It's not the kind of thing you would have found on the front page of the New York Times or Washington Post.

That is because there are not law violations tied to the operation. What you are alleging is perjury to Congress or obstruction of Congress. No deaths associated with that.

 

[Minoosh]

dup

 

[Minoosh]

... the whole sordid mess only became public when US Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed by a gun bought in the US by a straw buyer and allowed to be "walked" into Mexico ...

That shooter would have had a gun whether Fast and Furious existed or not. It's what bad hombres do.

 

[Minoosh]

Sessions met with Russian envoy twice last year, encounters he later did not disclose

I am grateful Sessions gave a straight-up denial even though Franken's question was incoherent.

What is the Bannon/Trump agenda here? Trying to cause as much disruption as possible? Is this another distraction?

 

[PhantomWolf]

I'm not the one who needs to get over it. I'm very happy with the current political situation.

You are happy with what appears to be collusion between a presidential campaign and a foreign Government to interfere in the internal politics of your country?

You have no concerns about what cost that Foreign Government may have demanded for its apparent help and interference in the internal politics of your country?

You have no concerns that multiple members of the administration have now been caught out lying to the public and at the least not full disclosing to congress about their level of contact with this foreign Government?

None of this concerns you?

 

[BobTheCoward]

You are happy with what appears to be collusion between a presidential campaign and a foreign Government to interfere in the internal politics of your country?

So many thoughts on this but the biggest is the lack of evidence that actually occurred.

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

So many thoughts on this but the biggest is the lack of evidence that actually occurred.

Seriously, you still can't let that rest until the mounting evidence makes it too obvious for even you to deny it?

What is the point, given the snowball is rolling furiously down the hill, in standing on the sidelines saying there is no evidence?

I get it the proof is not yet overwhelming enough for conviction to come to fruition. I would have no issue with someone saying, there is some evidence but not enough.

But you are digging your heels in as if no writing, not one bit, was on the wall.