President Trump issues new order authorizing additional sanctions for interfering in upcoming US elections

President Donald Trump issued a new order authorizing additional sanctions against countries or individuals for interfering in upcoming US elections, but lawmakers of both parties immediately said the effort does not go far enough. The order would allow President Trump to sanction foreigners who interfere in the midterm elections to be held in less than two months. It covers overt efforts to meddle in election infrastructure, such as vote counts, as well as “propaganda” and other attempts to influence voting from abroad, said Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats. Sens Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), who jointly introduced a piece of legislation that would impose penalties for election interference earlier in 2018, said the order “does not go far enough to address” malicious activity by foreign entities.