Intelligence Community Says Iran Interferes Against Trump, Russia Supports Him

Iran INTERFERES While Russia SUPPORTS Trump

Russia wants former President Donald Trump to win, and the intelligence community thinks Iran is trying to sway the 2024 election.

 

In 2021, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence revealed that Moscow tried to discredit President Joe Biden and Tehran tried to hurt Trump’s 2020 reelection. On Monday, an ODNI officer told reporters that both sides were doing that again before this election.

 

The individual said Iran “primarily focused on increasing social discord and fueling distrust in U.S. political institutions.”

 

Since our last update, the IC has detected Tehran meddling in the presidential contest, likely to avoid escalating relations with the US. The ODNI source said, “Iran’s preference is focused on this core interest,” referencing a July 9 press briefing. “Iran is not supporting the candidate who, in the opinion of Iran’s leaders, would exacerbate those tensions.”

 

Tehran uses “a vast web” of online personas to spread propaganda and misinformation that “have notably been active in exacerbating tensions with Israel,” while Russia “leverages” influence-for-hire companies, some of which are Russian, to influence U.S. public opinion, including election-related operations.

 

When asked which candidate Tehran favored, the ODNI officer pointed reporters to the previous election review. It said: “We assess that Iran carried out a multipronged covert influence campaign intended to undercut former President Trump’s reelection prospects, though without directly promoting his rivals, undermine public confidence in the electoral process and U.S. institutions, and sow division and exacerbate societal tensions in the U.S.”

We find that Russian President [Vladimir] Putin authorized influence activities against the Democratic Party, President Biden’s candidacy, and former President Trump by several Russian government agencies. The goals were to erode public trust in elections and deepen US sociopolitical divisions.

 

The official said that “given the role the U.S. is playing about supporting Kyiv,” Moscow supports Republicans because the GOP disagrees with Ukraine’s military aid. Officials said the ODNI has “not observed a shift in Russia’s preference” for the presidential election.

 

Tehran has attacked Trump and several national security staff members who participated in the 2020 American military operation in Iraq that killed Gen. Qassem Soleimani. Though unrelated to the Trump assassination attempt earlier this month, the intelligence community obtained intelligence weeks before suggesting it may be organizing an attack.

 

This month, National Security Council coordinator Adrienne Watson told the Washington Examiner, “As we have said many times, we have been tracking Iranian threats against former Trump administration officials for years, dating back to the last administration.” Iran’s wrath for Qassem Soleimani’s killing drives these threats. This is an urgent national and homeland security issue.

 

The Justice Department charged Iranian national Shahram Poursafi, a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, with trying to assassinate former President Trump’s national security adviser John Bolton in August 2022.

 

The ODNI called Russia the “predominant threat” to U.S. elections in a Monday update.

 

Moscow continues to use a variety of influence actors and techniques to hide its influence, broaden its audience, and deliver American-friendly content. The report says these players want to support a presidential candidate, influence congressional election results, weaken public trust in the electoral process, and deepen sociopolitical divisions.