Bernie Sanders disavows Russian efforts to help his campaign
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Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders on Friday disavowed Russian efforts to help his campaign after a report surfaced the same day that U.S. officials have determined the country is attempting to interfere in the primary race on his behalf.
“I don’t care, frankly, who [Russian President Vladimir] Putin wants to be president,” Sanders said in a statement. “My message to Putin is clear: stay out of American elections, and as president I will make sure that you do.”
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The Washington Post first reported Friday that U.S. officials have told Sanders’ campaign that Russia is working to help his campaign as part of an effort to meddle in the Democratic presidential primary. The story, citing people familiar with the matter, said President Trump and lawmakers on Capitol Hill have also been informed of the Russian attempts.
“In 2016, Russia used Internet propaganda to sow division in our country, and my understanding is that they are doing it again in 2020,” Sanders said Friday. “Some of the ugly stuff on the Internet attributed to our campaign may well not be coming from real supporters.”
It also comes amid reports that intelligence officials told lawmakers in a classified briefing last week that Russia is meddling with the hope of getting President Trump reelected. But Trump has pushed back against the reports, claiming Democrats were pushing a “misinformation campaign” in the hope of politically damaging him.
“Unlike Donald Trump, I do not consider Vladimir Putin a good friend,” Sanders said. “He is an autocratic thug who is attempting to destroy democracy and crush dissent in Russia.”
The Vermont Democrat added: “Let’s be clear, the Russians want to undermine American democracy by dividing us up and, unlike the current president, I stand firmly against their efforts and any other foreign power that wants to interfere in our election.”
Moscow has denied any meddling. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday that the newest allegations are “paranoid reports that, unfortunately, there will be more and more of as we get closer to the elections [in the U.S.]. Of course, they have nothing to do with the truth.”
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The U.S. intelligence agencies say Russia interfered in the 2016 election through social media campaigns and by stealing and distributing emails from Democratic accounts. They say Russia was trying to boost Trump’s campaign and add chaos to the American political process.
Fox News’ Andrew Craft and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
