Putin Doesn't Get A Pass On Russian Election Attacks: Gottheimer

Bergen County congressman Josh Gottheimer reacted to President Trump's controversial remarks at a Monday news conference, saying Russian President Vladimir Putin does not get a pass for Russians meddling in the 2016 election, despite that conclusion from U.S. intelligence agencies.

"Republicans and Democrats agree that we cannot give Vladimir Putin a pass for Russia's unprecedented and well-documented attacks on our elections and institutions," said Gottheimer (NJ-5). "Our national security is not a partisan issue, and those who threaten it must be held responsible to prevent future attacks."

Trump's comments on the election meddling and his willingness to publicly excuse Putin on a national stage drew widespread outrage, including from lawmakers in the Republican party.

Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona — a longtime Trump critic — responded to the president's comments by calling them disgraceful.

"Today's press conference in Helsinki was one of the most disgraceful performances by an American president in memory," McCain said Monday. "The damage inflicted by President Trump's naiveté, egotism, false equivalence, and sympathy for autocrats is difficult to calculate. But it is clear that the summit in Helsinki was a tragic mistake."

The White House was in damage-control mode Tuesday. Trump was scheduled to meet with members of Congress.

Intelligence director Dan Coats, who issued a strongly worded statement that Russia did interfere in the election, reaffirmed his commitment to "provide unvarnished and objective intelligence in support of our national security."

"The role of the Intelligence Community is to provide the best information and fact-based assessments possible for the President and policymakers. We have been clear in our assessments of Russian meddling in the 2016 election and their ongoing, pervasive efforts to undermine our democracy, and we will continue to provide unvarnished and objective intelligence in support of our national security," Coats said in the statement.

Email daniel.hubbard@patch.com

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