Top security aide: Russia not aiding Trump re-election

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s national security adviser said he’s seen no intelligence indicating that Russia is doing anything to try to help get the president re-elected.

Robert O’Brien’s comments were released Saturday in a transcript of an interview on ABC’s “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” scheduled to air on Sunday.

“The national security adviser gets pretty good access to our intelligence,” Mr. O’Brien said. “I haven’t seen any intelligence that Russia is doing anything to attempt to get President Trump re-elected.”

Mr. O’Brien’s comment came after he was asked about media reports that an intelligence professional told members of the House intelligence committee that it was Russia’s aim to favor Mr. Trump in the election.

Some officials familiar with the classified briefing said lawmakers were told Russia was taking steps that would help Mr. Trump. And Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders acknowledged Friday that he was briefed last month by U.S. officials about Russian efforts to boost his candidacy.

A senior intelligence official with knowledge about the briefing, however, told The Associated Press on Friday that the U.S. election security briefers did not tell House intelligence committee members Russia was “aiding the re-election of President Trump.” The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the classified briefing, said some lawmakers reached conclusions that had not been made by the briefers.

Mr. O’Brien said he had not seen any intelligence or analyses indicating that Russia was aiding Mr. Trump and neither had top leaders in the intelligence agencies.

“All I know is that the Republicans on the side of the House hearing were unhappy with the hearing and said that there was no intelligence to back up what was being said,” Mr. O’Brien said. “But here’s the deal: I don’t even know if what’s been reported as being said (by the briefers) is true. You know those are leaks coming out of that hearing.”

Mr. O’Brien also denied reports that Mr. Trump became angry when he was told about the briefing and that he confronted former acting national intelligence director Joseph Maguire and subsequently replaced him with current U.S. ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell.

Mr. O’Brien said Mr. Trump was not angry with Mr. Maguire and would have liked Mr. Maguire to stay in government in a different role.