Spy Agencies Reject Trump Claim of China Election Meddling

Beijing ‘did not deploy interference efforts,’ DNI report says
Trump criticized FBI chief for focusing on Russia before vote

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021. Trump departs Washington with Americans more politically divided and more likely to be out of work than when he arrived, while awaiting trial for his second impeachment - an ignominious end to one of the most turbulent presidencies in American history.Photographer: Bloomberg/Bloomberg

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By Chris Strohm and Alyza Sebenius

March 16, 2021 at 7:20 PM UTC

Updated on

March 16, 2021 at 8:42 PM UTC

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The U.S. intelligence community concluded with “high confidence” that China didn’t attempt to change the outcome of the 2020 election, an assessment that contradicts repeated assertions by former President Donald Trump and his allies.

“We assess that China did not deploy interference efforts and considered but did not deploy influence efforts intended to change the outcome of the U.S. Presidential Election,” the Office of the Director of National Intelligence wrote in an unclassified report released on Tuesday. “China sought stability in its relationship with the United States” and “did not view either election outcome as being advantageous enough for China to risk getting caught meddling.”