What Trump got wrong in speech about China and 220 million voter files
Key Points:
- President Donald Trump claimed China conducted the "largest compromise of election data in history" by illicitly acquiring 220 million U.S. voter files to influence the 2020 election, but declassified U.S. intelligence documents do not support these assertions.
- The National Intelligence Council assessed that China sought to predict election outcomes and influence U.S. policy rather than interfere with voting infrastructure or alter votes, contradicting Trump's claims of election tampering.
- Experts and officials noted that much of the voter data China acquired was publicly available or purchased from commercial sources, and such data cannot be used to change votes or election results.
- State election officials and cybersecurity experts confirmed no evidence of compromised voter data impacting election outcomes, emphasizing that voter registration information is largely public and secure.
- Trump was briefed on Chinese election influence efforts during his administration, and intelligence reports were shared with him, contradicting his claim that information about the data acquisition was covered up by a "deep state."