A New Report Raises Big Questions About Last Year’s
DNC Hack
Former NSA experts say it wasn’t
a hack at all, but a leak—an inside job by someone with access to the DNC’s
system.
AUGUST 9, 2017
The
Democratic National Committee headquarters, October 27, 2016. (Sipa via AP Images)
It is now a year since the Democratic National
Committee’s mail system was compromised—a year since events in the spring and
early summer of 2016 were identified as remote hacks and, in short order,
attributed to Russians acting in behalf of Donald Trump. A great edifice has
been erected during this time. President Trump, members of his family, and
numerous people around him stand accused of various corruptions and extensive
collusion with Russians. Half a dozen simultaneous investigations proceed into
these matters. Last week news broke that Special Counsel Robert Mueller had
convened a grand jury, which issued its first subpoenas on August 3.
Allegations of treason are common; prominent political figures and many media
cultivate a case for impeachment.
The president’s ability to conduct foreign policy,
notably but not only with regard to Russia, is now crippled. Forced into a
corner and having no choice, Trump just signed legislation imposing severe new
sanctions on Russia and European companies working with it on pipeline projects
vital to Russia’s energy sector. Striking this close to the core of another
nation’s economy is customarily considered an act of war, we must not forget.
In retaliation, Moscow has announced that the United States must cut its
embassy staff by roughly two-thirds. All sides agree that relations between the
United States and Russia are now as fragile as they were during some of the
Cold War’s worst moments. To suggest that military conflict between two nuclear
powers inches ever closer can no longer be dismissed as hyperbole.
