Aug 9, 2020 - World

Pelosi says election threats from China and Russia are "not equivalent"

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday that the threats posed by China and Russia to U.S. elections are "not equivalent," stressing that "Russia is actively, 24/7, interfering in our election."

Why it matters: Top counterintelligence official William Evanina revealed in a statement on Friday that the Russian government is "using a range of measures" to "denigrate" Joe Biden ahead of the election. The government of China, meanwhile, prefers that Trump does not win re-election, Evanina said.

The big picture: Pelosi called on the intelligence community to release more information about Russia's efforts to interfere in the 2020 election.

What she's saying: "I take second place to no one on my criticism of China for over 30 years. ... What they said is China would prefer Joe Biden. Whether they do, that's their — that they would prefer Joe Biden. Russia is actively, 24/7 interfering in our election."

  • "They did so in 2016, and they are doing so now. And they say that to a certain extent, but they need to tell the American people more."
  • "The American people, I believe, they should decide who the president of the United States is. Not Vladimir Putin making that decision for us."

Go deeper: FBI director Wray warns of China election interference

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