House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi asked House Speaker Paul Ryan in a Tuesday letter to oppose any efforts from Republicans or Democrats to use leaked documents published online as fodder for the 2016 campaign.
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As you know, House Democrats and the DCCC have been the victims of a large-scale and sophisticated Russian cyber-attack.
Pelosi wrote that “defending our democracy from Russia’s meddling is more important” than any electoral advantage.
In a statement provided to Business Insider, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) said it can not control how its “individual expenditure unit” operates, citing one example where hacked content was used. Trump later said his call that Russian Federation find Clinton’s emails was sarcastic. She said the two parties should unite “in the face of Russia’s attempts to tamper with the will of the America people”.
Federal officials have been investigating electronic break-ins into Democratic Party computers by people that private cybersecurity analysts have blamed on Russian intelligence agencies.
House Republicans may soon take action to condemn or punish Democrats for breaking House rules during a June sit-in on the floor to protest gun violence, but Democrats are not fretting about it, House Minority Leader Steny Hoyer says.
But the embarrassing episode and the threat of more leaks – combined with the possibility that the hackers could fake documents to suggest criminal acts – is clearly weighing heavily on the Democrats’ minds as the election season ticks down to November. The disclosures appeared to show a plot to undermine presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and eventually led to the resignation of the group’s chairwomen, Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
AshLee Strong, a spokesperson for Ryan, told reporters after Wednesday’s press conference that Republicans were conducting “robust review process” of the sit-in that included interviewing the Sergeant at Arms of the House of Representatives as well as members, some of whom were directly involved.
The letter comes on the heels of a similar plea sent last week by DCCC Chairman Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) to Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.), who heads the Republicans’ campaign arm.
A spokeswoman then cited an ad attacking Democratic congressional candidate Randy Perkins, who is running for Rep. Patrick Murphy’s seat in Florida.
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In June, Dems vowed to keep the lower chamber of Congress in session until a vote was held on gun control proposals, seized the floor of the House, and, though recessed by GOP leaders, delivered speeches while streaming their actions via social media.
