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You know who seems to have done more to save our country from Trump than James Comey and Bob Mueller combined? Reality Winner. #ThankYouRealityWinner #FreeRealityWinner
#Shero
https://theintercept.com/2018/09/26/reality-winner-jail-isolation/ 1/
#Shero
https://theintercept.com/2018/09/26/reality-winner-jail-isolation/ 1/
2/ In September 2016, NBC News reported that Russian hackers had targeted voter registration systems in nearly have of the states in the US & successfully penetrated four. https://abcnews.go.com/US/russian-hackers-targeted-half-states-voter-registration-systems/story?id=42435822
3/ Comey, however, downplayed the concern: "’There's no doubt that some bad actors have been poking around,’ FBI Director James Comey told lawmakers Wednesday, without offering any more specifics.” https://abcnews.go.com/US/russian-hackers-targeted-half-states-voter-registration-systems/story?id=42435822
4/ He downplayed the concern despite Harry Reid’s demand for an investigation in August 2016. https://www.theverge.com/2016/8/30/12709304/fbi-public-investigation-election-hack-russia-harry-reid
5/ He downplayed the concern despite reports in June 2016 that Russia had also hacked the DNC. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/russian-government-hackers-penetrated-dnc-stole-opposition-research-on-trump/2016/06/14/cf006cb4-316e-11e6-8ff7-7b6c1998b7a0_story.html
6/ In December 2016, Trump denied Russian interference. https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/people/2016/12/08/time-names-trump-person-year/
7/ The same month, Senator Harry Reid called on Comey to “resign for withholding information revealed in CIA report that Russian operatives gave hacked emails to WikiLeaks.” https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/dec/10/fbi-russia-trump-election-harry-reid-james-comey-wikileaks
8/ in January 2017, NBC News reported that Russia had compromised 7 states before the 2016 election. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/u-s-intel-russia-compromised-seven-states-prior-2016-election-n850296
9/ In January 2017, Trump suggested he would be open to lifting sanctions on Russia. https://www.cnn.com/2017/01/13/politics/donald-trump-russia-sanctions-taiwan/index.html
10/ On 2/19/17, reports surfaced that Michael Flynn had received a hand-delivered letter outlining a way for President Trump to lift sanctions against Russia. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/19/us/politics/donald-trump-ukraine-russia.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share
11/ On 2/26/17, Trump tweeted that “Russia talk is fake news...” https://www.cnn.com/2017/02/15/politics/trump-russia-issues/index.html
12/ On 5/30/17, “Michael D. Cohen, President Trump’s personal lawyer, said on Tuesday that he was refusing to cooperate with House and Senate intelligence committee investigations into Russian election meddling.” https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/30/us/politics/michael-cohen-russia-investigation.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share
13/ On 5/31/17, the Trump administration moved to return Russian compounds in Maryland and New York. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/trump-administration-moves-to-return-russian-compounds-in-maryland-and-new-york/2017/05/31/3c4778d2-4616-11e7-98cd-af64b4fe2dfc_story.html
14/ On June 5, 2017, the Intercept published the NSA report leaked by #RealityWinner detailing that Russian hackers had attacked three election-system vendors, one of which (VR Systems) provides electronic poll book software to eight states. https://theintercept.com/2017/06/05/top-secret-nsa-report-details-russian-hacking-effort-days-before-2016-election/
15/ “Several key state officials said no one had warned them about the Russian scheme until the leaked memo from the...NSA, appeared in The Intercept in June 2017. To them, Winner's leak was a form of public service.” https://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/will_bunch/free-reality-winner-whistleblower-american-hero-20180724.html
16/ Ten days after the Interceot published the NSA report leaked by #RealityWinner, the Senate voted to limit Trump’s power to lift Russia sanctions. https://www.npr.org/2017/06/15/533018332/senate-votes-to-limit-trumps-power-to-lift-russia-sanctions
17/ On 7/5/2017, US. lawmakers reached a deal on a Russia sanctions bill, creating limits for Trump. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-russia-sanctions-idUSKBN1A70L0
18/ 8/2/17 - “Trump signs Russia sanctions bill into law despite what he called its ‘problems’” https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/02/trump-expected-to-sign-russia-sanctions-bill-sometime-wednesday-reports.html
19/ But for #RealityWinner, this likely would not have happened. She understood the importance of transparency when Comey and the DHS did not.
20/ And for her courage and patriotism, Trump’s DOJ sent her to prison for 5 years under the Espionage Act. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/23/us/reality-winner-nsa-sentence.html
21/ This article says there is no “public interest” exception under the Espionage Act. https://www.mintpressnews.com/nsa-whistleblower-reality-winner-pleads-guilty/244896/
22/ But I wonder if the Espionage Act, as applied under these circumstances, might be deemed void as a matter of public policy or perhaps unconstitutional. Thought welcome. Thank you. #FreeRealityWinner
23/ PS. “There were no “sources and methods” in anything The Intercept published [from the NSA report leaked by Reality Winner].” https://theintercept.com/2018/08/23/reality-winner-sentenced-leak-election-hacking/
24/ I do not think we can assume that, but for #RealityWinner’s bravery, we would have been told the very little that we do know about Russia’s election interference. Downplaying threats seems to be Comey’s M.O. (except for Hillary’s emails).
25/ Thread about Comey’s downplaying the potential significance of the RNC emails hacked by Russia. https://twitter.com/jennycohn1/status/1038500045639770112?s=21
26/ Comey also significantly underplayed the risk that hackers could alter electronic vote tallies. Thread. https://twitter.com/jennycohn1/status/1108194842599788546?s=21
27/ Other than Hillary’s emails, Comey seems to have held the very paternalistic view that Americans can’t handle the truth.
28/ I worry that Mueller may have been cut from the same cloth. https://twitter.com/jennycohn1/status/935268617570025473?s=21
29/ And that it took a woman, this woman, to have the courage and foresight to warn the public of the danger we are in.
30/ Here’s another tidbit that preceded #RealityWinner’s decision to blow the whistle on Russian election interference: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-fbi-kushner-exclusive-idUSKBN18N018
And another. https://foreignpolicy.com/2017/05/25/trump-nato-meeting-brussels-defense-spending-transatlantic-alliance/ 31/
32/ And this happened the day after the Intercept published the NSA report, suggesting that even EAC considered the leak an act of public service and that they themselves were surprised by & acted in the new info. https://twitter.com/jennycohn1/status/1116179778539638784?s=21
33/ This belongs on the timeline too. https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/884016887692234753?s=21
34/ #RealityWinner mailed the NSA report confirming Russia’s attack on US election infrastructure to the Intercept on May 10, 2017, per the postmark. Trump had fired Comey the day before. https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/reality-winner-whistleblower-sentencing-715064/
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