US presidential elections have become more vulnerable to hacking because of the responses to Russia's alleged hacking of the 2016 presidential election by both President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama, former US Ambassador to NATO Nicholas Burns testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee, the New York Post reported.
Burns, a retired career diplomat who served as a State Department official under the administration of former President George W. Bush, said Americans “deserved to know” how Russian officials attempted to influence the outcome of last year;s election.
Burns' testimony comes days after the Washington Post reported that Obama was aware of the Russian hacking prior to the election but failed to act upon it. “I think if you go back and you look at it, the American people, in my judgment, deserved to know what was happening,” Burns said.
He also criticized Trump for failing to punish Russia for its interference, calling the president's hesitance to confront Russia a “dereliction of basic duty to defend the country.”
“I find it dismaying and objectionable that President Trump continues to deny the undeniable fact that Russia launched a major cyberattack against the US,” he said.