DOJ told RT to register as foreign agent partly because of alleged 2016 election interference
Justice Department official says scrutiny of Russian English-language channel followed U.S. intelligence agency report.
By JOSH GERSTEIN 12/21/2017 10:42 AM EST Updated 12/21/2017 11:50 AM EST
The Justice Department's decision to direct Russian-backed English-language news outlet RT to register as a foreign agent was triggered in part by an intelligence community report that said the network played a role in Moscow's efforts to aid Donald Trump in the 2016 election, a DOJ official said Thursday.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General for National Security Adam Hickey told reporters that the multi-agency assessment made public by the U.S. government in January, which alleged a concerted effort by Russia to interfere in the U.S. presidential race last year, was one of the factors that led the Justice Department to examine whether RT's U.S. affiliates were violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act by failing to register.
"You probably are aware that the intelligence community published an assessment of Russia's efforts to interfere with our presidential election last year," Hickey said in response to a question about why RT was told to register in August after operating in the U.S. since 2010. "That report was certainly relevant to our decision to examine them more recently."
RT's U.S. subsidiary and a related production company officially registered as foreign agents under protest last month after a heated back-and-forth with Justice Department officials about the firms' obligations under FARA. RT said it disagreed with DOJ's position but was obliged to register in order to avoid the possibility that employees in its U.S. operations could be arrested.
more
https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/21/russia-today-justice-department-foreign-agent-election-interference-312211?lo=ap_b1
= new reply since forum marked as read
He'll try to handle it with their next phone call.