President Donald Trump announced the release of declassified intelligence Thursday that he said exposed major weaknesses in America’s election systems and efforts to conceal foreign interference.
During the primetime address, Trump said China had obtained 220 million U.S. voter files beginning around the 2020 election cycle. The compromised information allegedly included names, addresses, phone numbers, party preferences, and other sensitive data.
A White House transparency report said voter information from 18 states had been accessed. Trump described the breach as possibly the largest compromise of election data in history.
“This data loss presents an unprecedented election security nightmare,” Trump said.
Trump accused officials within the intelligence community of suppressing reports about China’s activities. He said dozens of CIA and National Security Agency reports were kept out of his presidential briefings during his first term.
The president cited an email in which intelligence analysts allegedly admitted that they had “deliberately massaged” a presidential briefing to withhold information about China. He also said an FBI official wrote that she was operating a “shadow government.”
The Daily Caller reported that intelligence officials had expressed concern that Trump could use information about Chinese interference during the 2020 campaign. The outlet said declassified records also showed disputes within the intelligence community over how China’s actions should be assessed.
Trump directed the Justice Department, FBI, CIA, and Office of the Director of National Intelligence to investigate why the information was withheld. He called for officials involved to be fired and potentially charged if investigators find criminal wrongdoing.
The president also released intelligence assessments concerning weaknesses in voter registration databases, electronic voting equipment, poll books, and election websites.
One assessment said foreign adversaries, including China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, had the ability to compromise parts of the nation’s election infrastructure. Trump said his administration would work with state and local officials to repair known technical weaknesses before the midterm elections.
Trump also cited a Department of Homeland Security review that allegedly identified about 278,000 noncitizens registered to vote in federal elections. He said the review did not include several Democratic-led states that refused to provide voter data.
The president ordered DHS to notify states about potentially ineligible voters and direct officials to remove them from voter rolls.
Trump also discussed an investigation into alleged fraudulent voter registration applications in Michigan during the 2020 election. He said FBI documents showed that some canvassers admitted signing other people’s names and submitting registrations for nonexistent individuals.
He asked FBI Director Kash Patel to fully investigate the matter and work with the Justice Department to prosecute any crimes.
Trump ended the address by urging Congress to pass the SAVE America Act. The election legislation would require photo identification when voting and proof of citizenship when registering.
“No country could be great without fair and honest elections,” Trump said.
Democrats rejected Trump’s accusations. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) said an earlier intelligence assessment concluded that China did not attempt to interfere in the 2020 election. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said the SAVE America Act would not advance in the Senate.
Republicans called for further action. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rick Crawford (R-AR) urged CIA Director John Ratcliffe to hold officials accountable, while Rep. Ben Cline (R-VA) called for stronger protections against foreign interference and noncitizen voting.