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Ambiguous comments from homeland chief on election meddling

19 of July 2018

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen addresses a convention of state secretaries of state, Saturday, July 14, 2018, in Philadelphia. Nielsen told the gathering that there are no signs that Russia is targeting this year's midterm elections with the same "scale or scope" it targeted the 2016 presidential election. (AP Photo/Mel Evans),U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen addresses a convention of state secretaries of state, Saturday, July 14, 2018, in Philadelphia. Nielsen told the gathering that there are no signs that Russia is targeting this year's midterm elections with the same "scale or scope" it targeted the 2016 presidential election. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)

ASPEN, Colo. (AP) — Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen says she has not seen evidence that the Russians meddled in the 2016 election to help elect Trump, countering the U.S. intelligence agencies assessment on the issue.

Intelligence agencies concluded in early 2017 that President Vladimir Putin ordered “an influence campaign” aimed at helping the Trump campaign and harming his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton.

Nielsen said: “I haven’t seen any evidence that the attempts to interfere in our election infrastructure was to favor a particular party.”

And yet Nielsen still says she stands behind the intelligence agencies’ assessment that Russia meddled in the election. She added that Russia’s influence operations were aimed at causing chaos on both sides.

Nielsen spoke Thursday at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado.