President Donald J. Trump released newly declassified intelligence on July 17 that he said had been hidden from the American public for years. The documents reveal, according to the release, that foreign adversaries led by China have compromised U.S. voter data on a large scale and that America’s election infrastructure remains vulnerable to hacking and manipulation.
The statement says officials deliberately suppressed this intelligence. It also reports that some political opponents and media organizations sought to discredit or downplay the disclosures following their release.
According to the announcement, President Trump has directed the Director of National Intelligence, Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Central Intelligence Agency to investigate how this information was concealed from both him as sitting president and from citizens. He is calling for accountability for those responsible, including potential criminal charges.
The statement includes several claims made by critics regarding previous knowledge of foreign interference attempts, the public nature of some voter data, lack of evidence showing vote outcomes were changed, significance of non-citizens on voter rolls, security of mail-in voting systems, and absence of widespread fraud or irregularities in elections.
The release concludes with President Trump calling on Congress to pass the SAVE America Act as a measure to safeguard elections against exploitation.