Former Defense Secretary William Cohen cautions Trump on intel fight
Intelligence sources confirmed to CBS News’ Jeff Pegues Monday that the CIA has “high confidence” that the Russian government worked to influence the U.S. presidential election in favor of Donald Trump.
Similar allegations surfaced during and after the campaign, Trump and his team have been highly dismissive of any interference by the Russians.
During one debate, Trump asserted the hack of the Democratic National Committee could have been carried out by somebody sitting on their bed “that weighs 400 pounds.”
On Friday, the transition team dismissed other reports about the intelligence community’s conclusions about Russian hacking, saying in a statement “These are the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.”
And over the weekend, Trump again brushed away those conclusions, calling it “ridiculous” that Russia was trying to help his candidacy.
“I think it’s a big mistake to belittle the intelligence community because it looks as if you’re trying to politicize it,” William Cohen, a former secretary of defense told Scott Pelley on the “CBS Evening News.”
“Most of the time they get it right,” Cohen said.
Watch the video above for more of Cohen’s interview, including his thoughts on Trump refusing to receive daily intelligence briefings.