Russian hacking: Putin winner in U.S. election

Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin gained multiple advantages in the U.S. election that elevated Donald Trump to the White House, including the defeat of a potentially formidable adversary: Hillary Clinton. /image via itv.com

Evidence and logic show the Russian Federation government was involved in hacking efforts that were designed to impact the 2016 U.S. election.

The evidence of Russian meddling is compelling, and it was convincingly presented last week by Eugene Kiely for FactCheck.org:

• All U.S. intelligence agencies and at least three companies have investigated election-related hacking such as the cracking of John Podesta's email account and concluded that the Russian government was involved
• CrowdStrike, the company hired to investigate the May 2016 hacking of the Democratic National Committee, concluded that "two separate Russian intelligence-affiliated adversaries" were responsible for the electronic espionage
• Fidelis Cybersecurity, another Internet security firm, not only concurred with CrowdStrike's findings but also declared "this settles the question" of Russian government involvement in the DNC hack
• On Nov. 17, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper testified before a House committee, stating the utmost care was taken before the U.S. intelligence community identified the Russian government as the source of election-related hacking: "We gave considerable thought to diming out Russia."

Logically, the case is just as convincing. Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin had powerful motives to push for a Donald Trump victory:

• Hillary Clinton, who had foreign policy experience as secretary of state, would have likely been an adversary on the world stage if she had become president.
• Donald Trump, who has no foreign policy experience beyond financial dealings, has signaled willingness to cooperate with Putin, including openness to recognizing Russia's annexation of Crimea and fighting in tandem against ISIS in the Middle East.
• The chaotic spectacle of the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign, including Clinton winning the popular vote, is a huge PSYOP victory for Putin. The hacking exposed dirty tricks and fueled unsubstantiated suspicion of vote rigging.

On Oct. 7, the Department of Homeland Security reported the agency was "confident" that the Russian government was involved in hacking attacks on the U.S. election. /www.dhs.gov