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A2 UP FRONT
Friday 3 august 2018

White House asserts 'vast' effort to protect elections

By ZEKE MILLER and DEB the cyber threat now ex-
RIECHMANN ceeds the danger of a
WASHINGTON (AP) — Re- physical attack against
sponding to wide-ranging the U.S. by a hostile foreign
criticism that it lacked a group.
clear national strategy to Wray told reporters that
protect U.S. elections, the compared to 2016, in 2018
Trump administration put "we are not yet seeing the
on a show of force Thurs- same kind of efforts to spe-
day and said the presi- cifically target election in-
dent had directed a "vast, frastructure," but that other
government-wide effort" to efforts to influence public
safeguard a cornerstone of opinion continue. He add-
American democracy. ed that the FBI has active
John Bolton, the national investigations on foreign
security adviser, also wrote influence across all 56 of its
in a letter to Senate Demo- field offices.
crats that "President Trump "Make no mistake, the
has not and will not tolerate scope of this foreign influ-
interference in America's ence threat is both broad
system of representative and deep," he said.
government." But Nielsen said U.S. agen-
The warning to American cies have "seen a willing-
adversaries came as top Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats arrives for the daily press briefing at the White House, ness and a capability on
U.S. intelligence and home- Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018, in Washington. From left, National Security Adviser John Bolton, Coats, and the part of the Russians" to
land security officials raised FBI Director Christopher Wray. attack U.S. election infra-
alarms about potential ef- Associated Press structure.
forts to influence the 2018 On Capitol Hill, lawmakers
and 2020 elections. Home- Nakasone and FBI Direc- responses might have al- been ordered or autho- in both parties have pushed
land security chief Kirstjen tor Christopher Wray, they ready taken place, saying rized to conduct any of- election security toward
Nielsen said: "Our democ- appeared together at the the operations are sensitive fensive cyber operations in the top of the fall agenda
racy is in the crosshairs." White House on Thursday and require confidential- response to foreign med- amid heightened concerns
"We continue to see a per- to try to reassure the Ameri- ity to achieve success. "I dling in the U.S., Nakasone about interference by Rus-
vasive messaging cam- can people they are doing won't discuss the specif- offered a vague response. sians and others in the mid-
paign by Russia to try to everything in their power to ics, except to state that "So my guidance and the term elections.
weaken and divide the address the threat. our forces are well-trained, direction from the pres- Both Republicans and
United States," Director of "We're throwing everything ready and very capable," ent secretary of defense is Democrats have criti-
National Intelligence Dan at it," Coats said. he said. very clear, we're not going cized the administration's
Coats said. Nakasone, who is also the At one of his confirmation to accept meddling in the response as fragmented,
Their rare appearance dur- commander of the U.S. hearings in March, Naka- elections. And it's very un- without enough coordina-
ing a White House briefing Cyber Command, said the sone said his role was to ambiguous." tion across federal agen-
came as a display of re- command and the NSA provide a series of cyber Nielsen, Wray and Naka- cies. And with the mid-
solve, weeks after Trump are both tracking a wide options that might be used sone had all gathered terms only three months
publicly undermined the range of foreign cyber as a deterrent to Russian earlier this week in New away, critics have called
conclusions of American adversaries and "are pre- meddling, but he told Con- York City with leaders of on Trump to take a stronger
intelligence agencies re- pared to conduct opera- gress then that cyber or top finance, energy and stand.
garding Russian interfer- tions against those actors military options might not telecommunications com- Sen. Mark Warner of Virgin-
ence. After suffering a bi- attempting to undermine be the most effective. "In panies for a cybersecurity ia, the ranking Democrat
partisan outcry, Trump later our nation's midterm elec- fact, it may be less effec- summit, where they spoke on the Senate intelligence
said he accepted those tions." tive than other options that of the urgent need for a committee, questioned
findings. Nakasone did not divulge might be considered," he collective, collaborative whether Trump was serious
Along with National Secu- details of the U.S. cyber said. approach to security. about countering Russian
rity Agency Director Paul playbook or say what U.S. Asked specifically if he had At the event, Nielsen said interference.q