Donald Trump said that only “publicly available information” had been stolen by a hack of his campaign for the presidency as he pinned the dramatic theft on the Iranian government.
The news of an alleged hack emerged amid reports from the news website Politico that it had begun getting emails from an anonymous account with internal documents from the Trump campaign, including a vetting dossier on his running mate JD Vance.
“We were just informed by Microsoft Corporation that one of our many websites was hacked by the Iranian Government – Never a nice thing to do!” Trump said in a statement on his Truth Social media platform.
Trump added: “They were only able to get publicly available information but, nevertheless, they shouldn’t be doing anything of this nature. Iran and others will stop at nothing, because our Government is Weak and Ineffective, but it won’t be for long.”
The reference to Iran and Microsoft appears to confirm a Microsoft report released on Friday about alleged hackers with ties to Iran who “sent a spear-phishing email in June to a high-ranking official on a presidential campaign from the compromised email account of a former senior adviser”.
The Microsoft report did not identify the official or senior adviser.
Politico reported that it been getting emails from an anonymous account from someone who identified themselves only as “Robert”. That account sent Politico internal campaign communications and a 271-page long research dossier on Vance. The news organisation said the Vance profile was “based on publicly available information about Vance’s past record and statements” and appears to be linked to the vetting process.
In a statement to Politico, campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said: “The Iranians know that President Trump will stop their reign of terror just like he did in his first four years in the White House.”
News of the potentially embarrassing and damaging hack was yet another blow to a Trump campaign that has endured a sharp reversal in its fortunes in recent weeks. Trump’s effort to reclaim the White House had emerged unified and ahead in the polls after last month’s Republican national convention as it prepared to do battle with a struggling Joe Biden.
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However, Biden’s historic decision to drop out of the race and endorse Vice-President Kamala Harris has shaken up a race that seemed for a long time likely to end in Democratic defeat. Harris – and her new running mate Minnesota governor Tim Walz – have surged in the polls and recent head-to-head surveys show her ahead of Trump. She has also strengthened markedly in the vital swing states that are key to victory in November’s contest.
On Saturday the New York Times released a poll showing Harris was leading Trump by four points in each of Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania – the three key Rust Belt states that have been a huge focus of each campaign’s efforts.