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Trump defends Russia outreach amid US intel criticism

A part of the declassified version Intelligence Community Assessment on Russia's efforts to interfere with the U.S. political process is photographed in Washington, Friday, Jan. 6, 2017. Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a campaign to influence the American presidential election in favor of electing Donald Trump, according to the report issued by U.S. intelligence agencies. The unclassified version was the most detailed public account to date of Russian efforts to interfere with the U.S. political process, with actions that included hacking into the email accounts of the Democratic National Committee and individual Democrats like Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman John Podesta. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick)
A part of the declassified version Intelligence Community Assessment on Russia's efforts to interfere with the U.S. political process is photographed in Washington, Friday, Jan. 6, 2017. Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a campaign to influence the American presidential election in favor of electing Donald Trump, according to the report issued by U.S. intelligence agencies. The unclassified version was the most detailed public account to date of Russian efforts to interfere with the U.S. political process, with actions that included hacking into the email accounts of the Democratic National Committee and individual Democrats like Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman John Podesta. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick)

By Associated Press 4 min read

NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. intelligence officials are convinced that Russia meddled in the presidential race. But that hasn’t changed President-elect Donald Trump’s call for warmer relations with Moscow.

Trump declared in a series of tweets on Saturday that “only ‘stupid’ people or fools” would come to a different conclusion.

“Having a good relationship with Russia is a good thing, not a bad thing,” he stated from Trump Tower, adding: “We have enough problems without yet another one.”

American intelligence officials on Friday briefed the president-elect on their conclusions that the Kremlin interfered in the 2016 election in order to help him win the White House. An unclassified version of the report explicitly tied Russian President Vladimir Putin to election meddling and said that Moscow had a “clear preference” for Trump in his race against Hillary Clinton.

Trump has repeatedly sought to downplay the allegations, alarming some who see a pattern of skepticism directed at U.S. intelligence agencies and a willingness to embrace Putin.