President Trump will hold a meeting with his National Security Council Friday, reportedly to address the matter of election security. A White House official says the session "could include a discussion of possible Russian interference in November’s midterm elections."
Friday’s NSC meeting comes a week and a half after Trump’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki. Trump was roundly criticized for his comments at a news conference there siding with Putin — who has denied that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election — over U.S. intelligence agencies, which have concluded based on evidence that Russia did interfere.
In the days that followed, Trump waffled between saying he has full faith in the U.S. intelligence agencies and casting doubt on Russia’s election interference. He tweeted last weekend that “it is all a big hoax.”
But when he sits down Friday with his national security team — which includes Bolton, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and intelligence and military chiefs — Trump is expected to be confronted with the government’s latest intelligence regarding election threats, including from Russia.
It was unclear what Friday’s agenda entailed, but it would be striking to convene a meeting on election security without delving into the Russian threat — especially as the president is under scrutiny for his warm overtures to Putin.
Trump to hold National Security Council meeting on election security Friday (WaPo)