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Top Democrats request FBI briefing on foreign election interference targeting Congress

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The leaders say they “believe it is imperative that the FBI provide a classified defensive briefing to all Members of Congress.”
Democratic congressional leaders on Monday released a joint letter to FBI Director Chris Wray requesting a “defensive counterintelligence briefing” on election security for all members of Congress prior to August recess, in a sign concerns about potential foreign interference are mounting as the November election nears.
The letter, sent last week by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Mark Warner, and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, says the leaders “believe it is imperative that the FBI provide a classified defensive briefing to all Members of Congress.”
“We are gravely concerned, in particular, that Congress appears to be the target of a concerted foreign interference campaign, which seeks to launder and amplify disinformation in order to influence congressional activity, public debate, and the presidential election in November,” the Democrats wrote. The letter was dated July 13 and asked Wray to respond by Monday. The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CBS News.
The letter includes a header that says “unclassified when separated from attachment,” suggesting the request is based at least in part on classified intelligence. All four lawmakers are part of the Gang of 8, a select group that is briefed by the executive branch on highly classified intelligence matters.
“To ensure a clear and unambiguous record of the counterintelligence threats of concern, the four enclosed with the letter a classified addendum that draws, in large part, from the Executive Branch’s own reporting and analysis,” a congressional official said.
The letter did not specify in detail what prompted the all-member briefing request, but its release follows a similar request from Democratic Senators Gary Peters of Michigan and Ron Wyden of Oregon — the ranking members, respectively, of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs (HSGAC) and the Senate Committee on Finance.

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