Report: Bernie Sanders Briefed that Russia Trying to Help His Campaign
Joshua Caplan
U.S. officials have warned Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) that Russia is attempting to boost his prospects of winning the White House in 2020, according to the Washington Post.
President Donald Trump and Congressional lawmakers have also received briefings regarding the Kremlin’s efforts to boost Sanders, sources familiar with the matter told the Post. In a statement to the newspaper, Sanders called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “thug” and said he stands “firmly against” any efforts to interfere in U.S. elections
“I don’t care, frankly, who Putin wants to be president,” Sanders said. “My message to Putin is clear: stay out of American elections, and as president I will make sure that you do.”
“In 2016, Russia used internet propaganda to sow division in our country, and my understanding is that they are doing it again in 2020. Some of the ugly stuff on the Internet attributed to our campaign may well not be coming from real supporters,” he added.
A spokesperson for the Sanders campaign would not comment on the nature of Russia’s attempted efforts to help the Vermont senator.
The development comes after Sanders raised the prospect of Russia being behind online posts in support of the lawmaker, which have been described as toxic and violent by former Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D) at this week’s Democrat debate in Nevada. Several other Sanders detractors have made similar claims.
“All of us remember 2016 and what we remember is efforts by Russians and others to try to interfere in our election and divide us up,” Sanders said, referring to memes posted by alleged Russian government agents in the last election.
Earlier this week, The New York Times reported that U.S. intelligence officials briefed lawmakers on Capitol Hill that Russia has “developed a preference” for President Trump to win re-election.
This story is developing. Check Breitbart News for updates.
Joshua Caplan
U.S. officials have warned Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) that Russia is attempting to boost his prospects of winning the White House in 2020, according to the Washington Post.
President Donald Trump and Congressional lawmakers have also received briefings regarding the Kremlin’s efforts to boost Sanders, sources familiar with the matter told the Post. In a statement to the newspaper, Sanders called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “thug” and said he stands “firmly against” any efforts to interfere in U.S. elections
“I don’t care, frankly, who Putin wants to be president,” Sanders said. “My message to Putin is clear: stay out of American elections, and as president I will make sure that you do.”
“In 2016, Russia used internet propaganda to sow division in our country, and my understanding is that they are doing it again in 2020. Some of the ugly stuff on the Internet attributed to our campaign may well not be coming from real supporters,” he added.
A spokesperson for the Sanders campaign would not comment on the nature of Russia’s attempted efforts to help the Vermont senator.
The development comes after Sanders raised the prospect of Russia being behind online posts in support of the lawmaker, which have been described as toxic and violent by former Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D) at this week’s Democrat debate in Nevada. Several other Sanders detractors have made similar claims.
“All of us remember 2016 and what we remember is efforts by Russians and others to try to interfere in our election and divide us up,” Sanders said, referring to memes posted by alleged Russian government agents in the last election.
Earlier this week, The New York Times reported that U.S. intelligence officials briefed lawmakers on Capitol Hill that Russia has “developed a preference” for President Trump to win re-election.
This story is developing. Check Breitbart News for updates.
Report: Bernie Sanders Briefed that Russia Trying to Help His Campaign
U.S. officials have warned Bernie Sanders that Russia is attempting to boost his prospects of winning the White House, according to a report.
www.breitbart.com
, you just never know these days 
