Former CIA director says he was concerned about possible Russian ties to Trump campaign
Former CIA director John Brennan. Wikimedia Commons.
Former CIA director John Brennan told the House Intelligence Committee on Tuesday that he became concerned last year that Russia was trying to influence members of the Trump campaign.
Brennan said he didn’t know whether there was any collusion, but the intelligence information served as the basis of the FBI investigation, report the New York Times and the Washington Post.
“I encountered and am aware of information and intelligence that revealed contacts and interactions between Russian officials and U.S. persons involved in the Trump campaign that I was concerned about because of known Russian efforts to suborn such individuals,” Brennan testified. “It raised questions in my mind about whether Russia was able to gain the cooperation of those individuals.”
Brennan said that Russia often uses intermediaries to contact its targets, and many times people in the United States don’t know they are interacting with a Russian.
Brennan said he warned the chief of Russia’s domestic security service in a phone call that the country’s attempt to influence the U.S. election would backfire and outrage American voters.