President Donald Trump boasted on Friday about pressuring FIFA over a red card suspension and took credit for the World Cup’s success during a reception in New York City ahead of the final on Sunday.
“I was forced to call Gianni and make a recommendation,” the Republican president said, standing alongside FIFA President Gianni Infantino inside Trump Tower. He was referring to a call earlier this month in which he urged Infantino to review U.S. striker Folarin Balogun’s one-match ban — which was later suspended in a decision that drew scrutiny.
“It was so much better the way it worked out because there was no controversy,” Trump said.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Trump described the 2026 World Cup as the most successful event in history and floated the idea of the U.S. hosting a future tournament “without Mexico and Canada.”
He also returned to his longstanding, unsubstantiated claims that the 2020 election was rigged.
Those allegations were the focal point of his Thursday night address to the nation, in which he alleged foreign interference in recent U.S. elections. Former national security officials, Democrats and a handful of Republicans said the address was filled with falsehoods and exaggerations.
Trump today
- Trump confirms he called Infantino to ask that FIFA suspend Balogun's red card
- Trump brings up claims of election fraud during FIFA event
- Donald Trump hails 'great reviews' for speech not aired live on three major networks
- Trump outlines sprawling election hacking plot in primetime TV address
- President claims ‘deep state’ actors within his own government covered up meddling
- China reject's Trump's allegations and denies interference
Catch up: What the intel community has previously said about 2020 election meddling
Friday 17 July 2026 02:15 , Josh Marcus
Report shows Russia attempted to influence 2020 election by ‘supporting’ Trump
Trump claims China carried out 'stunning' election scheme beginning in 2020
Friday 17 July 2026 02:17 , Josh Marcus
In a highly anticipated Thursday night speech, President Donald Trump accused China of carrying out “the largest compromise of election data in history” beginning with the 2020 election.
The scheme allegedly netted China 220 million files about U.S. voters.
The Republican further claimed U.S. officials concealed the nature of the threat from him.
Trump claims security officials underplayed threat of election vulnerabilities
Friday 17 July 2026 02:20 , Josh Marcus
The president alleges Americans have been misled by U.S. officials about the extent of vulnerabilities in U.S. election infrastructure.
“Americans were blatantly lied to about the security of our election infrastructure, including electronic voting machines and ballot counting systems,” he said.
Trump calls on FBI to revive alleged 2020 investigation about Michigan
Friday 17 July 2026 02:27 , Josh Marcus
The president said he is calling on federal law enforcement to revive an alleged 2020 investigation into voter fraud in 2020 in Michigan.
“The documents state that some canvassers admitted to FBI agents that they signed voter registration forms in other people's names, submitted fraudulent registration for people who did not exist, and received gift cards tied to their number of applications that they produced,” Trump claimed. “In other words, it was pay, play, and cheat. The FBI agents working on the case believe that crimes were committed, yet the Biden Department of Justice slow-walked the investigation and killed it.”
Trump alleges info about Chinese election attacks was kept out of presidential briefings
Friday 17 July 2026 02:28 , Josh Marcus
“Dozens of significant CIA and NSA reports about China's election targeting were kept out of the presidential briefing,” Trump claimed. “These were briefings I would get almost every day. Everything was kept out.”
Trump fuels MAGA conspiracy theory about Venezuela in elections speech
Friday 17 July 2026 02:50 , Josh Marcus
As expected, President Donald Trump’s speech included references to alleged election vulnerabilities in Venezuela, which MAGA allies of the president have alleged spilled into U.S. elections.
“Today, we are releasing documents that show the CIA obtained reporting of a specific plot to do a big number in favor of the corrupt Maduro regime in Venezuela,” Trump said.
“This reporting included precise details about methods to…digitally alter vote totals in ways that could not be detected even with an audit, no matter how deep they went.”
Here’s more on the GOP Venezuela angle, courtesy of Alex Woodward, who had this look at the dubious theory ahead of Trump’s speech.
Is Trump getting his 2020 election revenge against Venezuela?
Trump claims ‘deep state’ actors in his own government covered up Chinese ‘election interference’
Friday 17 July 2026 02:51 , Josh Marcus
With 110 days remaining until voters decide the balance of power in the next Congress, Donald Trump used a rare prime-time address to accuse unnamed national security officials of hiding information about the security of America’s elections and alleged Chinese efforts to interfere in the election he lost nearly six years ago.
Speaking from the East Room of the White House, Trump said he was releasing “critical intelligence” showing “shocking vulnerabilities” in America’s election system in a bid to pressure the current Republican-led Congress to pass partisan voting restriction legislation he has deemed essential to helping his party retain control of the House and Senate.
Citing no evidence, the president claimed American elections are vulnerable “to hacking, exploitation, and foreign interference” and accused the People’s Republic of China of carrying out “the largest compromise of election data in history” by acquiring election data — much of which is commercially available for purchase by political campaigns and other interested parties.
“They wanted to just make you sound like your president wasn't so hot, when actually your president has done a great job, and they did everything possible to do exactly that,” he said.
Andrew Feinberg has the story:
Trump claims ‘deep state’ actors in covered up Chinese ‘election interference’
PHOTOS: Trump officials look on as president gives conspiratorial 2020 elections speech
Friday 17 July 2026 02:55 , Josh Marcus
'Some bulls***': Democratic election officials react to Trump speech
Friday 17 July 2026 03:15 , Josh Marcus
Democratic election officials reacted with skepticism on Thursday to President Trump’s major elections speech, which appears to have combined a variety of MAGA conspiracy theories with previously disclosed evidence.
“That was some bulls***,” Democratic Association of Secretaries of State (DASS) Chair Cisco Aguilar said in a statement.
Former Defense and CIA chief says Trump speech full of 'disproven claims'
Friday 17 July 2026 03:21 , Josh Marcus
Leon Panetta, who previously held roles as head of the CIA and Department of Defense, claims Donald Trump’s speech tonight was full of speculation and exaggeration.
“As someone who spent my career protecting America’s national security, I know the difference between legitimate security threats and political narratives,” Panetta said in a statement along with the group Issue One. “Our intelligence professionals concluded there was no evidence of cyberattacks altering votes or changing outcomes in the 2020 elections.”
“Recycling disproven claims about an election that took place six years ago doesn’t strengthen our security – it distracts from the real work of protecting the elections ahead,” he added. “It is incumbent upon every elected and administrative official to push back against the president’s lies tonight.”
Former State Department official questions lack of action steps after Trump alleges China conspiracy
Friday 17 July 2026 03:25 , Josh Marcus
President Trump’s speech tonight was heavy on accusations and light on action, according to Biden administration State Department official Matthew Miller.
“So the president has supposedly just unveiled a massive plot by China to interfere in our elections, and he’s going to do nothing to China in response?” Miller wrote on X. “No sanctions, no countermeasures? Not even a phone call to his buddy Xi? Come on.”
News networks offer disclaimers on explosive Trump speech
Friday 17 July 2026 04:00 , Josh Marcus
No one wants a multi-million dollar defamation suit on their hands.
As news networks sought to cover President Trump’s major elections speech tonight, they issued careful disclaimers about the Republican’s statements.
After all, 2020 election conspiracies on air helped lead to Fox News paying out a whopping $787 million in a defamation suit.
So, as the big networks again had to wade into the waters of 2020 election info, they tread carefully.
On CBS News, anchor Tony Dokoupil acknowledged the president’s penchant for false claims about the election.
”Much of what the president had said on this topic has been false,” Dokoupil said. “Most notably, of course, the claim that he won the 2020 election, when of course he did not.”
Fox News, meanwhile, had words of caution about Trump’s claims that voting machines could have major vulnerabilities.
"Fox News has not seen that evidence yet [and] is not in a position to evaluate the accuracy of the president's statement and claims,” one anchor said.
What do Trump’s declassified election conspiracy documents show — and how much was known already?
Friday 17 July 2026 04:36 , Josh Marcus
President Donald Trump has spent more than a decade spreading false and inflated claims about election outcomes and how the nation’s elections are run. His primetime address on Thursday was no exception.
The president alleged “shocking vulnerabilities in election infrastructure” and claimed our “election system” is “dangerously” exposed to “hacking, exploitation and foreign interference.”
But it appears much of the newly declassified material he announced Thursday evening echoes or reinterprets previously disclosed information that was already known to intelligence officials, including during his first administration.
Importantly, nothing in the materials supports any allegations that any votes were manipulated by fraud or foreign actors to have changed election outcomes.
Election officials and voting rights advocates fear the president’s remarks, which he says are meant to protect elections, will instead continue to sow deep distrust in their legitimacy to serve his own interests.
Alex Woodward has the story.
What Trump said about election security — and what we already know
MAGA influencer wants Trump to blast China with tariffs over 2020 claims
Friday 17 July 2026 05:30 , Josh Marcus
Democrats and Republicans alike are asking the same question right now: If China really did compromise 2020 elections, as President Trump claims, what is the White House going to do about it?
One answer, according to right-wing influencer and conspiracy theorist Jack Posobiec, is to launch stepped-up tariffs on Beijing.
“This was an attack on our democracy,” Posobiec told former Trump adviser Steve Bannon in an interview on Thursday. “This was the greatest attack on our republic since 9/11, and it was done so by the Chinese Communist Party. And so as such, we should start by seeing an immediate ratchet up to 100 percent, 1000 percent on all Chinese goods.”
“That should happen tomorrow,” he added. “President Trump drops that down, drops the hammer on the Chinese Communist Party, then you watch how fast things change.”
Trump claims deep state plot’ covered up China efforts to ‘undermine’ 2020 election
Read the full files from Trump's 2020 election info dump
Friday 17 July 2026 06:15 , Josh Marcus
The Independent is actively reviewing the trove of documents the Trump administration released on Thursday to support its claims of wide-ranging vulnerabilities in U.S. election systems and a 2020 interference campaign by China.
If you want to take a look for yourself, here’s a link to the White House portal with the documents.
DHS appears to soften claims about thousands of illegally registered non-citizen voters
Friday 17 July 2026 07:00 , Josh Marcus
The White House claims it has discovered evidence of hundreds of thousands of non-citizens who are illegally registered to vote, part of a series of explosive election-related claims it has made alongside President Trump’s speech tonight.
“According to a D.H.S. review of state voter rolls and public records, they identified approximately 278,000 non-citizens who are registered to vote in federal elections,” reads a White House webpage detailing the allegations. “Since Democrat states refused to share their voter files, the real number is actually much higher—yet even this limited analysis found more than a quarter of a million foreigners illegally registered to vote.”
Meanwhile, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin has been a bit more measured, perhaps wary of how his predecessor was slammed for making unfounded claims about immigration issues.
On X, he wrote that DHS “has identified over 250,000 potential non-citizens illegally registered to vote in just 4 U.S. states.”
What the administration has not shown, however, is that wrongly registered people have actually voted en masse or changed the outcome of elections.
Countless reviews of the 2020 election have shown that the results were valid, and actual voter fraud is an extremely rare crime that has not been shown to sway elections.
Conservative journalist helping Trump hunt for conspiracies acknowledges 'zero evidence' foreign power turned 2020 race
Friday 17 July 2026 07:45 , Josh Marcus
A conservative journalist just inadvertently punctured a hole in President Trump’s claims that documents show a sprawling Chinese conspiracy to steal American elections.
“All I can acknowledge is what the intelligence shows,” Just the News founder John Solomon, who is part of a White House elections task force on the subject, told MS Now on Thursday. “I only know the intelligence community has zero evidence that a foreign power flipped a vote in 2020, ‘22, and ‘24.”
“I’m still researching,” he added.
Democratic senator worries Trump speech is prelude to military at polls
Friday 17 July 2026 08:30 , Josh Marcus
President Trump’s elections speech, which alleged widespread vulnerabilities in the U.S. voting system, could be just the beginning, according to one Democratic senator.
Sen. Elissa Slotkin fears the president’s repeated claims that elections are unsafe could be a prelude to sending the military to the polls, which could intimidate voters or local officials.
“The president refuses to rule out, as does his cabinet, sending in uniformed military,” Slotkin, a former CIA analyst, told MS Now of the possibility, which has inspired her to propose legislation barring such a step.
“What if they don’t have a warrant?” she added. “These are some really scary kind of tabletop exercises [and] things that we’re having here because the president has made clear this is not a joke to him…He’s willing to really do anything to ‘win’ in November.”
China hits back at Trump’s election hacking allegations
Friday 17 July 2026 08:45 , Joe Sommerlad
Responding to the president’s primetime attack last night, China’s Foreign Ministry has just said the allegations have no factual basis.
It adds that Beijing adheres to the principle of non-intervention in other state’s affairs and has no interest in influencing U.S. elections.
Earlier, the Chinese Embassy in Washington told Reuters that China “has never and will never interfere in the presidential elections.”
Donald Trump alleges sprawling Chinese election hacking plot in primetime address
Friday 17 July 2026 09:05 , Joe Sommerlad
With 109 days remaining until voters decide the balance of power in the next Congress, President Donald Trump used a rare primetime TV address to accuse unnamed national security officials of hiding information about the security of America’s elections and alleged Chinese efforts to interfere in the election he lost nearly six years ago.
Speaking from the East Room of the White House, Trump said he was releasing “critical intelligence” showing “shocking vulnerabilities” in America’s election system in a bid to pressure the current Republican-led Congress to pass partisan voting restriction legislation he has deemed essential to helping his party retain control of the House and Senate.
Offering no evidence, the president claimed American elections are vulnerable “to hacking, exploitation, and foreign interference” and accused the People’s Republic of China of carrying out “the largest compromise of election data in history” by acquiring election data – much of which is commercially available for purchase by political campaigns and other interested parties.
“They wanted to just make you sound like your president wasn't so hot, when actually your president has done a great job, and they did everything possible to do exactly that,” he said.
China’s Foreign Ministry has since responded by saying Trump’s allegations have no factual basis, reiterating that the country adheres to the principle of non-intervention in other state’s affairs and has no interest in influencing U.S. elections.
Andrew Feinberg has the story.
Trump claims deep state plot’ covered up China efforts to ‘undermine’ 2020 election
‘The ramblings of a mad king:’ Newsom leads Democratic attacks on Trump speech
Friday 17 July 2026 09:30 , Joe Sommerlad
Here’s just a taste of the opposition indignation about the president’s address last night, with the California governor setting the tone.
Tonight, America watched the ramblings of a mad king.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) July 17, 2026
Donald Trump’s address was not about the last election — it was THIS one.
Before a single vote has been cast, he’s already laying the groundwork to rig this election and convince YOU not to trust the results if they don’t go…
This president sadly wallows in grievance, vengeance, and conspiracy while Americans want their leaders to boldly tackle persistent inflation, expensive groceries, rising gas prices, and terrible cuts to affordable healthcare.
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) July 17, 2026
We Democrats are engaged in doing exactly that, and…
The president is scared of your power, and he wants you to believe your vote does not matter.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) July 17, 2026
He wants you to lose confidence in our electoral system so you stay home this November. He knows how discontent the American people are, and he wants to make sure that you do not vote.…
Donald Trump is a feeble, unhinged conspiracy-peddling 80-year old failed President.
— Hakeem Jeffries (@RepJeffries) July 17, 2026
The economy is a disaster under this guy and the American people know it.
Pathetic.
Tonight I heard a failed and desperate president who as war spirals and prices rise is as always focused on his grievances, his shame, and above all his fear of the accountability that will come with defeat.
— Jon Ossoff (@ossoff) July 17, 2026
I also heard a president signaling his unmistakable intent to attack…
White House documents show China 'did not intend' to hack election
Friday 17 July 2026 09:55 , Josh Marcus
Trump has a long history of making false claims about elections and files released by his own White House suggest he may once again be exaggerating.
One document, for instance, notes that “Beijing did not intend to try to affect the election,” directly contradicting Trump’s claims last night that China sought to steal the vote and tank his candidacy.
one of the supposedly damning docs the White House released tonight says Russia tried to undermine BIDEN.
— Catherine Rampell (@crampell) July 17, 2026
Also says China "prefers that President Trump be defeated" but actually "Beijing did not intend to try to affect the election" (!) pic.twitter.com/Bs5hTsf6iz
Trump insider admits that no votes were flipped in the last three elections
Friday 17 July 2026 10:20 , Joe Sommerlad
These remarks from John Solomon, a conservative journalist who has been chosen to lead Trump’s task force on declassifying documents, are not exactly a ringing endorsement of the claims the president made last night.
Given that Trump is a man who prizes unquestioning loyalty above all things, he is likely to be displeased.
At the end of this clip, John Solomon, who Trump hired at the White House to investigate elections, admits the intelligence does not show the 2020 election was rigged as Trump claims https://t.co/AU6uEVBMad
— Aidan McLaughlin (@aidnmclaughlin) July 17, 2026
Watch: Trump says US networks not airing his speech should have their licenses revoked
Friday 17 July 2026 10:45 , Joe Sommerlad
The president attacked ABC and NBC last night for declining to broadcast his address, saying in the course of it: “They and others in the media are part of a plot. They want to continue this fraud for whatever reason.
“Fraud like this should mean a revocation of their licences.”
Fox News issues disclaimer over Trump voting machine conspiracy – three years after losing $787M defamation case
Friday 17 July 2026 11:10 , Joe Sommerlad
The conservative network did air the president’s speech last night and wisely chose to tread carefully in its treatment of his remarks, given the trouble it encountered in the aftermath of the 2020 vote.
"Fox News has not seen the evidence yet and is not in a position to evaluate the accuracy of the president's statement and claims" pic.twitter.com/AOpcPjyNze
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 17, 2026
What do Trump’s declassified election conspiracy documents show – and how much was known already?
Friday 17 July 2026 11:35 , Joe Sommerlad
Donald Trump has spent more than a decade spreading false and inflated claims about election outcomes and how the nation’s elections are run. His primetime address on Thursday was no exception.
The president alleged “shocking vulnerabilities in election infrastructure” and claimed our “election system” is “dangerously” exposed to “hacking, exploitation and foreign interference.”
But it appears much of the newly declassified material he announced Thursday evening echoes or reinterprets previously disclosed information that was already known to intelligence officials, including during his first administration.
Importantly, nothing in the materials supports any allegations that any votes were manipulated by fraud or foreign actors to have changed election outcomes.
Election officials and voting rights advocates fear the president’s remarks, which he says are meant to protect elections, will instead continue to sow deep distrust in their legitimacy to serve his own interests.
Alex Woodward takes a closer look.
What Trump said about election security — and what we already know
Democrat says she fears Trump could send in troops to seize midterms ballots
Friday 17 July 2026 12:00 , Joe Sommerlad
On MS NOW’s The Last Word last night, Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin told anchor Lawrence O'Donnell she now feared Trump would attempt to send in the U.S. military to seize ballots because he is “willing to really do anything to win.”
Owen Scott has more.
Dem senator fears Trump may send troops to seize ballots in midterms elections
Trump’s speech ‘sounded more like a spy novel,’ says CNN analyst
Friday 17 July 2026 12:20 , Joe Sommerlad
Interviewed by Kaitlan Collins on The Source last night, the network’s analyst John King characterized the speech as “ominous” and observed that the allegations against foreign powers made by Trump “sounded more like a spy novel.”
Summing up the president’s remarks, King said: “He focused mostly on China. And he said he was releasing all of these new documents tonight that were going to prove more things about China, he says, trying to get voter roll information, trying to learn about how to pry into voting machines and voting systems.
“He never directly connected any of that to changing an election result. That’s important. I don’t have the documents in front of me. We’ll see if they get you there. But the president never did.”
“The only specific claim of actually rigging or changing an election result the president made,” King noted, was when he accused China of rigging a vote in Venezuela on behalf of Nicolas Maduro.
The pundit said Trump had been playing his “greatest hits” and admitted he had never heard a presidential address like it.
“It is impossible now in the Donald Trump era to have an adult conversation about a very legitimate issue,” King concluded.
“It would be nice if Democrats and Republicans could get together, as the president said at one point, why can’t we do this on a bipartisan basis?
“Well, he’s the reason they can’t do some of it on a bipartisan basis because he keeps telling Democrats they’re crooks and they stole elections.”
Here he is recapping the “actual facts” of the 2020 U.S. presidential election as we know them:
With President Trump's fixation on his 2020 election loss and continued claims of a rigged election, CNN's John King revisits the actual facts of the matter. pic.twitter.com/776Nw6n0du
— Anderson Cooper 360° (@AC360) July 17, 2026
‘A demented 25-minute exhibition of political pornography’
Friday 17 July 2026 12:45 , Joe Sommerlad
That’s how an incensed Lawrence O’Donnell described Trump’s broadcast on MS NOW’s The Last Word, also calling it “deeply sick” and likening it to Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell’s “proof of life” photograph from his hospital bed earlier this week, calling it a “proof of dementia video.”
O’Donnell also laid into the president for attempting to pressure Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger into “finding” him additional during the 2020 vote count.
”There’s no American who has tried to cheatand interfere in our elections in a bigger way than Donald Trump himself,” he fumed.
It was quite a dressing-down and began with this assault on Trump’s speechwriters:
🚨HOLY SHIT: Lawrence O’Donnell just EVISCERATED “deeply sick” Donald Trump and his speech in the BEST way possible:
— CALL TO ACTIVISM (@CalltoActivism) July 17, 2026
“He actually said the words, and he was reading this from a teleprompter: ‘We had transgender for everybody.’ So I guess that was, what? Donald Trump's way of… pic.twitter.com/MLK4HRJNZo
Acosta says Trump’s 2020 election defeat was because of botched pandemic response, not vote-rigging
Friday 17 July 2026 13:10 , Joe Sommerlad
Former CNN journalist Jim Acosta, a long-time enemy of the president’s who recently infuriated the White House with a report on the troubled makeover of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, said the reason Trump lost the vote to Joe Biden six years was not because of election fraud but because he failed to lead the country through Covid-19.
Here he is with a reminder of one of Trump’s wildest lines from that dark time.
Trump lost the 2020 election in large part because the voters believed he botched the response to Covid. Time and again, Trump said bonkers stuff like this. I was on the air that evening reporting that Americans should not take their health advice from the president. https://t.co/fjZKpSqg3G
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) July 16, 2026
‘I hope he gets the help he needs,’ says Omar
Friday 17 July 2026 13:35 , Joe Sommerlad
Here’s some more opposition reaction, this time from the outspoken Minnesota congresswoman, another person already in Trump’s little black book.
I hope he gets the help he so desperately needs.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) July 17, 2026
This is just pathetic and deranged. https://t.co/og70KjodkM
Trump claims speech drew ‘great reviews and ‘big audience’
Friday 17 July 2026 13:55 , Joe Sommerlad
Here’s the latest from the president on Truth Social this morning:
“Great reviews on speech last night. Big audience. Pass THE SAVE AMERICA ACT!!! Thank you!”
Trump doesn’t cite any specific reviews (and clearly didn’t see Lawrence O’Donnell last night), nor a source for his claim about viewing figures – remember it was not even aired on ABC or NBC and the professional Fox-watchers report back that it was barely covered there either.
Fox spent little over 5 minutes on Trump’s speech and then shifted back to Iran. pic.twitter.com/JyzMYLYXFD
— Acyn (@Acyn) July 17, 2026
incredible -- more than two hours into this morning's Fox & Friends, "fraud" has not been mentioned a single time and hosts haven't discussed Trump's big primetime speech at all. They have 787 million reasons to ignore it.
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 17, 2026
Trump calls for NBC and ABC to have their licenses revoked for not airing his ‘election interference’ speech
Friday 17 July 2026 14:15 , Joe Sommerlad
In case you missed this earlier, the president again threatened the free press last night – this time for not airing his address live, although ABC and NBC did make it available via their streaming platforms.
The president has repeatedly railed against news outlets over stories he doesn’t like and threatened to revoke broadcasters’ licenses for coverage he deems unfair since returning to the White House.
Earlier this year, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr threatened to start revoking licenses in response to Trump’s complaints about media coverage of his war with Iran.
Rhian Lubin reports.
Trump calls for NBC and ABC to have licenses revoked for not airing his speech
Gavin Newsom leads scornful Democratic reaction to Trump speech
Friday 17 July 2026 14:35 , Joe Sommerlad
Here’s a look back at how the likes of Newsom, Kamala Harris, Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries responded to the president’s “election interference” address last night.
‘The ramblings of a mad king:’ Gavin Newsom leads scornful reaction to Trump speech
Declassified document released to support Trump’s claims shows Russia tried to interfere on his behalf in 2020
Friday 17 July 2026 14:55 , Joe Sommerlad
One of the newly-declassified documents posted on the White House website last night to support the president’s claims about foreign interference in past elections actually suggests that he was the beneficiary of such an attempt by the Kremlin, not the victim.
This is really incredible. Docs released by Trump tonight confirm RUSSIA tried to spread claims Biden was engaged in criminal activity vis-a-vis Burisma and that it advanced those narratives "with US officials" and planed a "high-profile corruption scandal... at the peak of the… pic.twitter.com/BUXEYEGnKs
— Sam Stein (@samstein) July 17, 2026
The document in question comes from a National Intelligence Council assessment dated August 19, 2020 and states:
“President Putin and senior Russian officials are overseeing efforts by proxies – [REDACTED] – to spread claims about former Vice President Biden as well as Ukrainian politicians and alleged Ukrainian influence in the 2016 US election. These claims include that when the former Vice President was in office, he engaged in criminal activity in his dealings with Ukraine and individuals tied to Ukrainian energy firm Burisma. Derkach, Kilimnik, and other proxy actors affiliated with the Russian Government are advancing such initiatives with US officials and other prominent persons as well as online, including through personal interactions and audio and documentary film releases via US and Ukrainian media outlets.
“These figures are conspiring to intensify their efforts as the election approaches to orchestrate a high-profile corruption scandal implicating former Vice President Biden and the Democratic Party at the peak of the 2020 US presidential campaign. Their aim is to defeat the former Vice President and ensure the President’s victory. Some of these proxy actors anticipate that Ukraine themed narratives about Democratic corruption will play a decisive role in the election and that US persons are key to propagating these narratives.”
It’s hard to beat California Rep. Ted Lieu’s one-word reaction here:
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) July 17, 2026
White House already recruiting lawyers in anticipation of Democrat majority after midterms: report
Friday 17 July 2026 15:15 , Joe Sommerlad
While Republicans are publicly expressing confidence about their chances in November, the administration is quietly bracing for the opposition flipping the House of Representatives and launching fresh investigations and perhaps even a historic third impeachment probe, according to Bloomberg.
News: While Republicans express public confidence about the midterms, the Trump administration is already quietly staffing up in preparation for a potential Democratic flip of the House.
— Mica Soellner (@MicaSoellnerDC) July 17, 2026
The WH is preparing for a potential impeachment inquiry, how to response to subpoenas etc. https://t.co/G9LI5dKM1R
Marjorie Taylor Greene asks: ‘Who rigged the 2024 election?’
Friday 17 July 2026 15:35 , Joe Sommerlad
The former Georgia Republican representative continues to be a thorn in Trump’s side, calling his big speech: “Just a big shiny object for MAGA to distract them away from the Iran War, Epstein files, and massive failure to deliver campaign promises.”
If the Russians rigged the 2016 election and China rigged the 2020 election, who rigged the 2024 election??
— Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@FmrRepMTG) July 17, 2026
And why won’t both parties, who both say voting machines can be hacked and votes flipped, get rid of voting machines?
And how absurd it is that all the people now…
She also argues that the foreign power currently seeking to influence American politics is Israel.
The foreign influence we are experiencing comes from Israel and their donors.
— Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@FmrRepMTG) July 17, 2026
And Trump, his admin, and Republicans are the ones controlled by a foreign government.
Which is why they pulled America into senseless a war with Iran that the American people do not support.
Analysis: Trump accusing China of conspiracy is not mad – it’s worse than that
Friday 17 July 2026 16:00 , Joe Sommerlad
The president’s latest attack on Beijing and the U.S. ‘deep state’ is a sign that he’s planning to prepare for the worst in America’s November elections, writes our world affairs editor Sam Kiley.
Trump accusing China of conspiracy is not mad - it’s worse than that
Trump enemy Schiff calls election narrative ‘a renewed attempt to inject fear and cloud reality’
Friday 17 July 2026 16:30 , Joe Sommerlad
California Sen. Adam Schiff offers this breakdown of the president’s speech last night and what he considers to be its true purpose:
Trump knows he has failed to deliver on any of his campaign promises, has raised costs of American families instead of lowering them, and gotten us into another Middle Eastern war nobody wanted. Terrified that voters will send his party packing in the midterms, he is falling back…
— Senator Adam Schiff (@SenAdamSchiff) July 17, 2026
The reality is that foreign governments do try to influence our elections—in fact, Trump has previously encouraged Russia to do exactly that. He has also repeatedly ignored and dismissed previous, credible intelligence about foreign interference in elections because it did not…
— Senator Adam Schiff (@SenAdamSchiff) July 17, 2026
What the President presented tonight was not a leveling with the American people. It was a renewed attempt to inject fear and cloud reality ahead of the next election in November and provide pretext for seizing voter data, and discrediting and interfering with election results.…
— Senator Adam Schiff (@SenAdamSchiff) July 17, 2026
Recap: Trump claims ‘deep state plot’ covered up efforts by China to ‘undermine’ the 2020 election that he lost
Friday 17 July 2026 16:55 , Joe Sommerlad
If you missed the president’s remarks last night or are just joining, here are Andrew Feinberg and John Bowden with a full report on the allegations he had to make about alleged foreign interference in recent American elections and the role Washington’s “deep state” may have played in concealing the truth.
Trump claims deep state plot’ covered up China efforts to ‘undermine’ 2020 election
Trump’s declassified docs reveal that Russia tried to help him in 2020 – a claim the president has long denied
Friday 17 July 2026 17:25 , Joe Sommerlad
The White House released a series of documents Thursday evening promoting the president’s assertion that U.S. elections are vulnerable to manipulation, although at least one contains information the president has previously denied.
Among the trove of election integrity documents, released in tandem with the president’s speech, one National Intelligence Council assessment on “Foreign Threats to the 2020 Election” determined that Russian government-linked actors were trying to boost Trump’s campaign.
The document insinuates that Russia seemingly preferred Trump and wanted to boost his campaign on social media while disparaging former president Joe Biden’s then-presidential campaign.
However, when that information was initially released in 2020, Trump brushed it off as a “hoax” and accused Democrats of spreading misinformation that Russia preferred him as a candidate.
Here’s more from Ariana Baio.
White House docs reveal Russia tried to help Trump in 2020 despite president’s denial
Watch: Democrat warns Trump could use military to seize ballots at midterms
Friday 17 July 2026 17:55 , Joe Sommerlad
Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin had this to say on MS NOW’s The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell last night.
What Trump said about election security – and what we already know
Friday 17 July 2026 18:25 , Joe Sommerlad
Donald Trump has spent more than a decade spreading false and inflated claims about election outcomes and how the nation’s elections are run. His primetime address on Thursday was no exception.
The president alleged “shocking vulnerabilities in election infrastructure” and claimed our “election system” is “dangerously” exposed to “hacking, exploitation and foreign interference.”
But it appears much of the newly declassified material he announced Thursday evening echoes or reinterprets previously disclosed information that was already known to intelligence officials, including during his first administration.
Importantly, nothing in the materials supports any allegations that any votes were manipulated by fraud or foreign actors to have changed election outcomes.
Election officials and voting rights advocates fear the president’s remarks, which he says are meant to protect elections, will instead continue to sow deep distrust in their legitimacy to serve his own interests.
Alex Woodward takes a closer look.
What Trump said about election security — and what we already know
DHS secretary says foreign adversaries can hack into voting machines and threatens state election officials
Friday 17 July 2026 18:28 , Brendan Rascius
Following President Trump’s speech on election security Thursday night, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin escalated the administration’s rhetoric, asserting that foreign adversaries could hack voting machines and warning that state officials who refuse to comply with federal security directives could face unspecified consequences.
In his primetime address, Trump described voting machines as “easily compromised.” Speaking to reporters Friday, Mullin went further, suggesting that hackers could infiltrate systems and manually alter vote totals—an allegation that runs counter to intelligence community findings that no such activity occurred.
“We’re saying that the machines had to be secured and that your voter restoration list needs to be scrubbed,” he told reporters while discussing his plan to aggressively pursue voter fraud, which reviews have found to be exceedingly rare.
“I will tell you if the states choose not to participate — we will make sure that we make those states a priority to look at who voted in their states and hold the election officials accountable,” he added.
Democrats push back on Markwayne Mullin’s election security measures
Friday 17 July 2026 18:55 , Brendan Rascius
Democrats criticized DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin after he announced certain “mandatory” election changes.
“We are going to make our security enhancements mandatory,” Mullin told reporters Friday, adding that states are going to “have to implement security issues.”
“We’re saying that the machines have to be secured and that your voter registration list needs to be scrubbed,” he said.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, considered a potential 2028 contender, shot back on X, writing: “California has free, fair, and secure elections and we will fight for them.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote: “They are losing, and they know it. Election officials will not be intimidated. Senate Democrats will make sure resources are in place to fight back against any illegal activity by the Trump administration.”
Multiple government reviews have found that voter fraud is exceedingly rare and that foreign adversaries did not alter votes in the 2020 election.
California has free, fair, and secure elections and we will fight for them.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) July 17, 2026
Try us. https://t.co/apFpjuGWn3
Democrat denounces Trump address, accusing him of 'refusing to accept reality'
Friday 17 July 2026 19:25 , Brendan Rascius
New York Rep. Jerry Nadler was one of many Democrats to denounce President Trump’s election address, during which he alleged the 2020 election was subject to foreign interference.
“The Trump administration’s own review of the 2020 election determined it was safe—a finding reaffirmed by countless audits and court cases,” Nadler wrote on X on Friday afternoon. “The only person refusing to accept reality is Donald Trump. His lies and countless attempts to undermine free and fair American elections are dangerous and antidemocratic.”
The Trump administration’s own review of the 2020 election determined it was safe—a finding reaffirmed by countless audits and court cases. The only person refusing to accept reality is Donald Trump. His lies and countless attempts to undermine free and fair American elections… https://t.co/n0RWSsVHqg
— Rep. Nadler (@RepJerryNadler) July 17, 2026
Trump set to attend FIFA reception in New York City on Friday afternoon
Friday 17 July 2026 20:00 , Brendan Rascius
President Donald Trump is scheduled to travel to New York City on Friday afternoon for a FIFA reception shortly after 5 p.m.
The event is set to take place in Trump Tower, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.
The White House also confirmed that the president will attend the World Cup final on Sunday, where Argentina will face off against Spain at MetLife Stadium.
Opinions about the fairness of the 2020 election are subject to huge partisan divide
Friday 17 July 2026 20:30 , Brendan Rascius
There is a massive partisan divide when it comes to opinions about the fairness of the 2020 election.
A majority of Republicans, 63 percent, believe the 2020 election was “stolen” from Donald Trump via election fraud, according to an April Reuters survey. Just 9 percent of Democrats and 21 percent of independents said the same.
Trump wants Lindsey Graham's sister to run for his seat in the special primary
Friday 17 July 2026 20:35 , Brendan Rascius
President Donald Trump said Friday that he urged South Carolina Senator Darline Graham Nordone to enter the state’s special Republican Senate primary this summer.
Nordone, the sister of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, was appointed Monday by Governor Henry McMaster to serve as an interim replacement after her 71-year-old brother died suddenly on Saturday.
A GOP primary is scheduled for August 11 to determine the party’s nominee for the November general election.
“I asked Darline, for the Good of our Nation, to run for the U.S. Senate in the Special Republican Primary,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday afternoon. “I hope Darline does this, in that there would be nobody better to honor the legacy of her beloved brother, Lindsey.”
Trump touches down in New York City for a FIFA reception
Friday 17 July 2026 20:53 , Brendan Rascius
President Donald Trump touched down in New York City on Friday afternoon to attend a FIFA reception at Trump Tower ahead of Sunday’s World Cup final.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Thursday that the 80-year-old president will also attend the championship match at MetLife Stadium between Argentina and Spain.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has said Trump will personally present the World Cup trophy to the winning team.
Trump says he is holding Canada 'responsible' for wildfires that blanketed US in smoke
Friday 17 July 2026 21:20 , Brendan Rascius
President Trump said the United States is “holding Canada responsible” for the wildfires raging in Ontario, which have sent a blanket of smoke drifting over New York and other parts of the country in recent days.
“We are holding Canada responsible for the fact that they are not properly maintaining their Forests, and Brush therein, and the United States is being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air, the quality of which is dangerous, and totally unacceptable,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday afternoon.
“I will call the Prime Minister during the day to find out what they are going to do about it,” he added. “The cost is incalculable!”
Trump touts latest inflation figures as evidence the 'Golden Age of America is here'
Friday 17 July 2026 21:50 , Brendan Rascius
President Trump touted the government’s latest inflation figures as evidence that the “Golden Age of America is here.”
“Such great news in June’s Inflation Numbers,” the 80-year-old president wrote on Truth Social on Friday afternoon.
“Prices FELL by the most in a single month in over six years,” he added. “The June CPI was below the forecast of every single Economist (67!) that Bloomberg polled. Prices were down across the board including for Gasoline, Electricity, Auto Insurance, Hotels, and Prescription Drugs.”
The latest Consumer Price Index report, released this week by the Labor Department, showed prices rose 3.5 percent in June, down from 4.2 percent in May. So, prices still increased year-over-year, but the increase was lower than the month before.
The deceleration was driven largely by a recent drop in gasoline prices.
America’s MAGA turnoff: Majority of Americans say they are less likely to vote for candidate pushing Trump agenda
Friday 17 July 2026 22:22 , Brendan Rascius
With just over 100 days until the midterm elections, a new poll finds Americans feeling as badly about the U.S. economy and feeling less enthused than candidates with MAGA as part of their campaign.
The CNBC All-America Economic Survey, which polled 1,000 voters from July 8 to July 12, found 57 percent of respondents said they unlikely to support self-identified MAGA candidates this year, compared with 32 percent who said they are unlikely to support a democratic socialist.
Andrew Feinberg reports...
Majority of Americans say they’re less likely to vote for MAGA candidates
Trump is set to speak at FIFA reception in Trump Tower
Friday 17 July 2026 22:30 , Brendan Rascius
President Donald Trump appears set to deliver remarks at a FIFA event in Trump Tower on Friday afternoon.
Reporters are gathered in a reception hall in the New York City skyscraper. A World Cup trophy was spotted near the president’s podium, according to an AFP reporter.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino praises Trump
Friday 17 July 2026 22:36 , Brendan Rascius
FIFA President Gianni Infantino is speaking at the reception alongside President Trump.
“By all means, this World Cup has exceeded all expectations,” Infantino said. “Full stadiums, seven million people in the stadium…billions in front of their TV, everyone enjoying the game with happiness.”
“The American dream, Mr. President, came to a reality,” he said, adding that “this World Cup would not have been such an incredible success without you.”
Trump brings up claims of election fraud during FIFA event
Friday 17 July 2026 22:41 , Brendan Rascius
President Trump is again speaking about the 2020 election, reviving his baseless claims of widespread fraud.
“I was supposed to be president for eight years,” Trump said. “They rigged the election and what did I get? I got the World Cup, the Olympics.”
Trump confirms he called Infantino to ask that FIFA suspend Balogun's red card
Friday 17 July 2026 22:47 , Brendan Rascius
President Trump confirmed that he called Infantino to ask that FIFA suspend U.S. striker Folarin Balogun’s World Cup red card, a decision that sparked a political firestorm.
“I was forced to call Gianni and make a recommendation,” Trump said. “ I'd like to make a complaint…There’s no controversy.”
Trump exits the stage as the YMCA plays
Friday 17 July 2026 22:54 , Brendan Rascius
President Trump has concluded his remarks and the YMCA began playing before the White House’s live feed cut off.
Before concluding, Trump said that Christopher Macchio, an opera singer, would be taking the stage for a performance.
During FIFA event, Trump boasted about the crowd size at his July 4 celebration
Friday 17 July 2026 23:23 , Brendan Rascius
During his remarks inside Trump Tower, the president boasted about the crowd size at his July 4 celebration in Washington, D.C.
“We had an amazing crowd. 450,000 people showed up to celebrate our country on a very rainy evening and because of lightning, everybody was forced to leave,” Trump said.
“We called everybody back and 150,000 people came back,” he said. “We had 150,000 people standing in the rain late in the evening.”
Donald Trump questions Thomas Tuchel’s tactics in World Cup loss: ‘Harry Kane on defence?’
Friday 17 July 2026 23:35 , Brendan Rascius
Donald Trump has remarkably become the latest person to question Thomas Tuchel’s tactics in England’s World Cup semi-final defeat.
On Wednesday, England took a second-half lead against Argentina and eventually found themselves within five minutes – plus added time – of their first men’s World Cup final since their 1966 triumph.
But Anthony Gordon’s goal gave way to a late strike from Enzo Fernandez and an even-later header by Lautaro Martinez. With that, Argentina saw off England in Atlanta, moving into Sunday’s final with Spain.
Alex Pattle reports...
Donald Trump questions Thomas Tuchel’s tactics: ‘Harry Kane on defence?’
US military says it conducted another round of strikes against Iran
Friday 17 July 2026 23:45 , Brendan Rascius
The U.S. military said on Friday that it conducted another round of strikes against Iran, marking the “seventh consecutive night” of bombardments.
CENTCOM launched a round of strikes against Iran at 3 p.m. ET today for the seventh consecutive night. The strikes are designed to continue degrading Iranian military capabilities at the Commander in Chief's direction.
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) July 17, 2026
Kentucky governor accuses Trump of lying 'over and over and over' after election address
Saturday 18 July 2026 00:30 , Brendan Rascius
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, a Democrat, accused President Donald Trump of lying “over and over and over” about the 2020 election, following the president’s prime-time address on Thursday.
“America's elections are secure,” Beshear wrote on X. “Not liking the outcome doesn't give you the right to be dishonest.”
America's elections are secure. Not liking the outcome doesn't give you the right to be dishonest. pic.twitter.com/SuRPuUmwpL
— Andy Beshear (@AndyBeshearKY) July 17, 2026
Video shows Trump greeting attendees at FIFA reception in Trump Tower
01:13 , Brendan Rascius
President Trump was seen greeting attendees during a FIFA reception on Friday in New York City.
The event, held inside Trump Tower, was attended by a number of sports figures, including FIFA President Gianni Infantino and New England Patriots billionaire owner Robert Kraft.
President @realDonaldTrump greets FIFA Reception attendees 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/w8P1f6Cc7a
— Margo Martin (@MargoMartin47) July 17, 2026
The Independent's live coverage has ended
01:27 , Brendan Rascius
The Independent’s live coverage has ended.
Trump boasts about pressuring FIFA boss over US player’s red card: ‘I’d like to wage a complaint’
01:35 , Brendan Rascius
President Donald Trump boasted about his controversial phone call to FIFA’s president, saying his effort to overturn a U.S. player’s World Cup suspension had “worked out much better” in the end.
He highlighted the episode while speaking at Trump Tower in New York City during a reception with FIFA chief Gianni Infantino, held ahead of Sunday’s World Cup final between Spain and Argentina.
While recounting the highlights of the weeks-long tournament, Trump singled out what he called “probably the most unforgettable moment”: the red card shown to U.S. striker Folarin Balogun, who received a one-match ban during the U.S.-Bosnia match on July 1.
Brendan Rascius reports...
Trump boasts about pressuring FIFA boss over US player’s red card
