The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence last week released the third of five volumes in its bipartisan investigation into Russia’s interference with U.S. elections, according to U.S. Sens. Richard Burr (R-NC) and Susan Collins (R-ME).
“I hope this committee’s bipartisan report will help further the public’s understanding of the threats we face and the current administration’s ability to respond to them,” said Sen. Burr, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
The committee’s third volume, entitled “U.S. Government Response to Russian Activities,” examines the Obama administration’s reaction to initial reports of election interference and the steps taken to deter Russia’s activities.
“The third volume of our report reveals how our government was not prepared to face Russia’s election interference efforts and took an overly cautious approach in its response, resulting in interference efforts in 2016 that lasted well past the election,” said Sen. Collins, who serves on the Senate Select Intelligence Committee. “We must continue to be vigilant and redouble our efforts to secure our electoral process.”
Sen. Burr noted that after the Obama administration discovered Russia’s election interference in late-2016, it struggled to respond.
“Frozen by ‘paralysis of analysis,’ hamstrung by constraints both real and perceived, Obama officials debated courses of action without truly taking one,” said Sen. Burr. “Many of their concerns were understandable.”
“In navigating those valid concerns, however, Obama officials made decisions that limited their options, including preventing internal information-sharing and siloing cyber and geopolitical threats,” he said.
As the nation approaches the 2020 presidential election, Sen. Burr thinks America is better positioned to identify foreign interference efforts and to address vulnerabilities that could be exploited.
“We must continue building on the lessons of 2016, including making sure we have strong response options at the ready,” Sen. Burr said.
Among several recommendations included in the third volume are that the United States exerts its leadership in creating international cyber norms; that the Executive Branch prepares for future attacks on U.S. elections; and that there be an integrated response to cyber events.
“Our comprehensive examination, which involved multiple public and closed hearings, interviews with more than 200 witnesses, and reviewing numerous documents, is crucial to understanding the threat Russia poses to our democratic system and the steps we should take to protect ourselves from foreign election interference,” said Sen. Collins.
The first volume, “Russian Efforts Against Election Infrastructure,” was released in July 2019, while volume two, “Russia’s Use of Social Media,” was released in September 2019.
The two remaining installments will examine the 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment on Russian interference and the committee’s final counterintelligence findings.