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The DNC Attack and Putin
All signs point to Russia being behind the DNC hack, reports Wired:
Not reacting politically to the DNC hack is setting a dangerous precedent. A foreign agency, exploiting Wikileaks and a cutthroat media marketplace, appears to be carefully planning and timing a high-stakes political campaign in the United States that could escalate next week, next fall, or next time. Trump, ironically, is right: the system is actually rigged.
American inaction now risks establishing a de facto norm that all election campaigns in the future, everywhere, are fair game for sabotage—sabotage that could potentially affect the outcome and tarnish the winner’s legitimacy. Inaction also risks squandering the deterrent effects created by the White House’s reaction to North Korea’s role in the infamous Sony Hack, as well as the US Department of Justice indictments of Chinese and Iranian operatives. Remarkably, so far the only countries that have had the confidence to call out aggressive Russian operations are Germanyalong with Switzerland and France in a more limited way.
It is time for the United States (and the United Kingdom) to pull their weight: by publishing more evidence, by signalling political consequences for the perpetrators, by treating Wikileaks as a legitimate counter-intelligence target, and by providing not only physical but also improved digital security to candidates and campaigns in the future.
More from Defense One. How Putin Weaponized Wikileaks to Influence the Election of an American President:
Close your eyes and imagine that a hacking group backed by Russian President Vladimir Putin broke into the email system of a major U.S. political party. The group stole thousands of sensitive messages and then published them through an obliging third party in a way that was strategically timed to influence the United States presidential election. Now open your eyes, because that’s what just happened. …
John Schindler. Wikileaks Dismantling of DNC Is Clear Attack by Putin on Clinton:
By stepping into the middle of our Presidential race, the obvious Russian front has outed themselves …
… Russian hackers working for the Kremlin cyber-pilfered the DNC then passed the purloined data, including thousands of unflattering emails, to Wikileaks, which has shown them to the world.
This, of course, means that Wikileaks is doing Moscow’s bidding and has placed itself in bed with Vladimir Putin. In response to the data-dump, the DNC has said as much and the Clinton campaign has endorsed the view that Moscow prefers Donald Trump in this election, and it’s using Wikileaks to harm Hillary. This view, considered bizarre by most people as late as last week, is being taken seriously by the White House—as it should be. …
I’m anything but a Hillary fan, as my extensive reporting on her crimes and lies in EmailGate can attest. However, I am far more troubled by the naked interference of the Kremlin and its spy agencies in American democracy, which is a threat to our freedoms beyond anything the Clintons might do. …
This isn’t really a surprise, but perhaps having it this close to home will make Americans take this seriously.
Published in General
If it’s true, then:
I’ll no longer be able to say that Putin has done nothing for me.
I will remember that when my violin needs some new strings.
I don’t get it. How could the Dems be so concerned about the hacking of their emails and so blasé about the hacking of Hillary’s State Department — oops — private server?
The irony seems to be missed by their campaign. I know it has been referred to on this site and this thread, but geez, why isn’t this part of the general conversation?
Deep Dark Case: Putin wants to be a player. Every once in a while , you have to ante up. So he showed some cards and Hillary knows she is his forever. He has all the emails.
OR
Probable Case: WikiLeaks has a lot of Bernie Folks and calls the Russians and asked what they had in exchange for first dibs on the next three juicy things to come in. The Russians sent the easy stuff over to keep WikiLeaks happy and make Putin look mysterious and tough.
Hey , folks, it’s Globalist free trade stuff, you know, so it must be good. Beyond nationalism and all that.
Last Scenario: Putin cannot stand Hillary at all. Her voice set’s his teeth on edge. Trump has big houses with gold faucets and good looking women. His kind of guy. He figures he will have more fun dealing with Trump than Hillary. So he kicks in and tells Donald he wants to make America and Russia Great Again, and asks if Melania has any sisters.
He explicitly stated that he might not come to the defense of the Baltic States if they were invaded or attacked by Russia, and his aides intervened aggressively to soften the GOP platform’s stance on providing military assistance to Ukraine. (On no other issue did the Trump team insist and twist arms like this.)
It seems to me that what is upsetting to HRC, the DNC and the Left is that they have always viewed Putin and Russia as their ally, brother in arms so to speak. It must be hurtful for them to discover that Putin and Russia does not see them as allies and more as useful idiots or even adversaries. It is sort of like being betrayed by a family member.
Two wrongs don’t make a right.
I’m against violins in all its forms.
Let us also not forget that Ted Kennedy secretly asked the Russians to meddle in the 1984 presidential election.
Interesting that Democrat political operatives interfered with an Israeli election and now we are concerned with a former KGB agent that is interfering with our elections.
I never knew that story; that’s truly shocking. Thanks for telling me about it.
I think it was included in the Soviet archives that your friend helped smuggle out.
I don’t think so, because this seems to have been unearthed in the early 1990s, when the archives were (relatively) more open. Peter wrote about it here.
You’re right, Claire.
This is analogous to plain old spying. All countries do it. We do it. Even allies spy on each other. But when someone gets caught in the act, they need to be prosecuted.
Manipulation of other countries’ elections happens all the time too, and we’re guilty of it. But again, if someone gets caught in the act, they need to pay a price. I hope the U.S. follows through on this.
It isn’t serious enough when a Sec State establishes a private email server to avoid FOIA, so why should we be concerned that a foreign state hacks a private organization?
Why aren’t we focusing on the homophobia, racism, and pay to play contained in the emails?
Stu, haven’t you learned anything? If a Democrat does it, it’s not homophobia, racism and pay to play. It’s a nuanced view of the world, with complicated actions we aren’t bright enough to understand, but it’s for our own good, so sit down, shut up and vote Hilary.
I know, I know – I am just singing to the Preacher.