R&I – FS
(CNN)There are already concerns about the integrity of the 2020 election with an intelligence official warning earlier this month that Russia, China and Iran are all seeking to interfere in the presidential contest this fall.
The Trump administration created more fears about that possibility this weekend when, as first reported by CNN, it informed members of Congress that the intelligence chief will no longer brief them in person on election security issues. It was yet another attack by the Trump administration on democratic institutions and the separation of powers enshrined in the Constitution, but also — as one of the Senate’s only two independent senators argued Saturday — an insult to the American people.
On its own, the notification from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence that the office would no longer brief Congress in person might seem like an esoteric issue to Americans who are struggling to return to normal life as the coronavirus pandemic continues its deadly rampage and millions of US workers have lost their jobs.
But it was the latest in a long list of efforts by Trump and his administration to erode the checks on their power two months from Election Day — efforts that have appeared to have one goal in common: ensuring that the President will be reelected in November.
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Carl Sagan
Article URL : https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/30/politics/2020-election-voting-trump-intelligence-briefing/index.html