Rss@dailykos.com (kerry Eleveld) · Wednesday, December 14, 2016, 7:45 pm
There's no way to read this New York Times story about Russian interference in competitive down-ballot House races and not conclude that some Republicans—including Paul Ryan—likely aided a foreign government in tampering with our elections. (UPDATE: In fact, NBC News reported Wednesday evening that U.S. intelligence officials have concluded with “a high level of confidence” that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally took part in deciding how to disseminate the information hackers obtained from Democrats.)
Where Ryan in particular is concerned, a Super PAC tied to him used the stolen material in attack ads. Ryan’s spokesperson all but confirmed that the material was stolen.
AshLee Strong, a spokeswoman for Mr. Ryan, said he did not control how the material was used in the ad, although she did not dispute that the material had been stolen as part of an act of Russian espionage. “Speaker Ryan has said for months that foreign intervention in our elections is unacceptable,” she said in a written statement.
Certainly not “unacceptable” enough to rein it in, even after Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and DCCC chair Rep. Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico notified their Republican counterparts of the hacking in no uncertain terms.
After the first political advertisement appeared using the hacked material, Mr. Luján wrote a letter to his Republican counterpart at the National Republican Congressional Committee urging him to not use this stolen material in the 2016 campaign.
“The N.R.C.C.’s use of documents stolen by the Russians plays right into the hands of one of the United States’ most dangerous adversaries,” Mr. Luján’s Aug. 29 letter said. “Put simply, if this action continues, the N.R.C.C. will be complicit in aiding the Russian government in its effort to influence American elections.”
Ms. Pelosi sent a similar letter in early September to Mr. Ryan. Neither received a response. By October, the Congressional Leadership Fund, a “super PAC” tied to Mr. Ryan, had used the stolen material in another advertisement, attacking Mr. Garcia during the general election in Florida.
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