Friday, May 4, 2018

Trump Administration Election Security Meeting


President Trump met with Members of his Administration, including Leaders of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS), on Thursday, to discuss Election Security.

The Meeting comes amid widespread concerns over the Possibility of Foreign Interference in Future Elections, including this year's Midterms, following Russia’s Hacking and Disinformation Effort against the 2016 Vote. The Russian effort included the Targeting of Digital State Election systems.

Trump met with Attorney General Jeff Sessions, DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Dan Coats, and FBI Director Christopher Wray, to discuss Election Security, “including enhanced protections against malign foreign influence,”.

DHS has been working to provide Sensitive Threat Information and Vulnerability Assessments to States that request them, as part of a broader effort to Protect Election Infrastructure going forward. “The President received an update about current Federal election security-related efforts, including information sharing and best practices like using paper ballots, issuing security clearances, and conducting security assessments,” the White House said.

“He also reiterated his guidance that election security is national security,” the White House said. “The Trump Administration will continue to provide the support necessary to the owners of election systems — State and local governments — to secure their election processes.”

Officials revealed last year that Russia had Targeted Voting Systems in 21 States as part of a Broader Plot to Interfere in the 2016 Election. Most of the efforts involved only Preparations for Hacking, like Probing for Vulnerabilities, and did not Lead to Successful Breaches.

Why the Meeting is notable, Critics of the Administration, particularly Democrats, have Charged that the President isn’t doing enough to Punish Russia for its Actions or to Protect against Future Interference.

Trump has at times cast Doubt on the Intelligence Community’s Assessment of Russia’s Activity, which in part concluded that Moscow acted to help Him Win the Election.










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