White House National Security Adviser John Bolton is saying there is ‘sufficient’ concern that China, Iran and North Korea could be meddling in the upcoming 2018 midterm election.
The White House has been feeling the heat about concerns Russia may try to interfere again in an American election but this was the first time that additional countries have been mentioned.
Bolton added those three countries in an interview on Sunday morning.
White House National Security Adviser John Bolton said there is ‘sufficient’ concern that China, Iran and North Korea could be meddling in the 2018 election
President Trump warned of China interference in a tweet on Saturday
‘I can say definitively that it’s a sufficient national security concern about Chinese meddling, Iranian meddling and North Korean meddling that we’re taking steps to try and prevent it. So all four of those countries, really,’ he said on ABC’s ‘This Week.’
‘Those are the four countries that we’re most concerned about,’ he added.
President Donald Trump warned of Chinese election meddling in a tweet on Saturday.
‘All of the fools that are so focused on looking only at Russia should start also looking in another direction, China. But in the end, if we are smart, tough and well prepared, we will get along with everyone!,’ he wrote.
Bolton would not address specific concerns about China when pressed on the issue but citied the four countries as ones the U.S. is watching closely as voters prepare to head to the polls in November.
The national security adviser emphasized he cannot get into specifics about preparations but offered reassurances that cyber security is a priority.
‘You need to establish structures of deterrence so that our adversaries who have conducted cyber operations against us or who are contemplating it come to understand they will pay a much higher price if they do that than if they simply refrain,’ he said.
Earlier this month the White House put on a show of force about election meddling, trotting out five national security officials to offer assurances they were working to safeguard American votes while offering few specifics on how they were doing so.
‘Our democracy is in the crosshairs,’ Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen declared during the early August press briefing.
National Security Adviser John Bolton, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, and FBI Director Christopher Wray briefed the public on election preparations in early August
Trump came under fire for siding with Vladimir Putin at their press conference in Helsinki when the Russian president said Moscow didn’t meddle in the 2016 contest
The unusual amount of senior level fire power came as the White House was under pressure about what actions it was taking to combat concerns about possible Russian meddling in the 2018 election.
Trump has asserted Russians are meddling in the upcoming contests to help Democrats.
‘I’m very concerned that Russia will be fighting very hard to have an impact on the upcoming Election. Based on the fact that no President has been tougher on Russia than me, they will be pushing very hard for the Democrats. They definitely don’t want Trump!’ the president tweeted in late July.
His allegation came after he came under fire for siding with Vladimir Putin at their press conference in Helsinki when the Russian president said Moscow didn’t meddle in the 2016 contest. U.S. intelligence agencies claim the Russian did so.