Russia hysteria is back as media push new interference claims
The New York Times claims intelligence officials are warning Congress that Vladimir Putin is trying to get President Trump re-elected; reaction on 'The Five.'
MSNBC host Joy Reid on Friday night declared that President Trump is "allowing an attack" from Russia amid reports that the Kremlin is attempting to interfere in the upcoming 2020 election.
It was reported yesterday that U.S. intelligence officials briefed lawmakers in a classified setting last week that Russia is expected to meddle in the presidential election to benefit President Trump. It was also reported on Friday that Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was briefed that Russia was aiming to benefit his campaign as well.
However, kicking off her show Friday night, Reid made a bold claim.
"The president of the United States is allowing an attack on our country to take place right now," Reid said, filling in for "All In" host Chris Hayes.
Reid pointed to the reported ousting of acting Director National Intelligence Joseph Maguire after he greenlit a briefing of lawmakers about Russia's election interference and knocked President Trump for "shifting the focus" on Sanders during his rally in Las Vegas.
MSNBC HOST LAWRENCE O'DONNELL DECLARES TRUMP A 'RUSSIAN OPERATIVE' WITH PUTIN AS 'RUNNING MATE'
She went on to praise Sanders for offering a "patriotic" response to the reports that Russia was aiming to help him in the election, which he flatly disavowed.
"The return of Russian interference is a huge deal. It matters for the very credibility of our democracy," Reid told her viewers. "Now, the president is at it again -- firing the acting director of national intelligence for speaking the truth and replacing him with one of his cronies."
Reid also labeled the recent developments Trump's "latest collusion with Russia," despite no charges coming from Special Counsel Robert Mueller's 2019 investigation.
The "Joy AM" host isn't the only MSNBC personality to make Russia-fueled attacks against the president. Her colleague Lawrence O'Donnell declared on Thursday night that Trump is a "Russian operative."
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“The president is a Russian operative. That sounds like the description of a bad Hollywood screenplay, but it is real," he said on his show "The Last Word."
"It is Vladimir Putin’s greatest achievement. Decades after America’s victory in the Cold War and collapse of the Soviet Union, the president of the United States is now helping the president of Russia help the president of the United States to get reelected."
At one point, O'Donnell suggested that Trump's administration "might be better labeled the Trump-Putin regime."
Fox News' Sam Dorman contributed to this report.
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