US intelligence warned House members Russia is working to get Trump re-elected – reports

Briefing to members of Congress is said to have led to abrupt removal of acting director of national intelligence

US intelligence officials are reported to have warned members of Congress last week that Russia was trying to interfere in the 2020 election campaign in favour of Donald Trump, in a briefing that led to the abrupt removal of the acting director of national intelligence.

When Trump heard about the briefing, he blamed the acting DNI, Joseph Maguire in the Oval Office, over what the president saw as disloyalty, the Washington Post reported. Until then, Maguire had been a leading candidate to become permanent DNI, and is understood to have told colleagues he expected to stay on in the position.