Trump Spokesman Sean Spicer Questions Magnitude Of New US Sanctions On Russia

President-elect Donald Trump’s spokesman Sean Spicer on Sunday questioned the utility of the fresh sanctions imposed by the U.S. government on Russia for its alleged cyberattack on U.S. institutions. Spicer’s remarks, made during an interview with ABC, are in sharp contrast with the stance taken by prominent Republican leaders, but in line with Trump’s views on the issue.

“I think one of the questions that we have is, ‘Why the magnitude of this?’” Spicer said. “I mean you look at 35 people being expelled, two sites being closed down, the question is, is that response in proportion to the actions taken?”

During the interview, Spicer also remarked on what he saw as absence of similar aggressive actions in 2015, when China was accused by the White House of using hackers to steal U.S. government and corporate data.

“China took over a million records, sensitive data of people like me who had worked in the government at any time. Not one thing happened,” Spicer said. “There is a question about whether there’s a political retribution here, versus a diplomatic response.”

U.S. intelligence agencies believe that the hack on Democratic National Committee servers, during which over 19,000 emails were stolen, was carried out by Russia, ostensibly to help Trump win the presidential elections. Russia, however, has denied being involved in the cyberassault, calling the new sanctions "a provocation aimed at further undermining Russian-US relations."

Although the Obama administration’s move garnered support from leading Republicans, including House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Trump is not entirely convinced that Russia was, in fact, behind the attack.

Since the start of his campaign, the president-elect has repeatedly praised Russian President Vladimir Putin and urged closer ties with Moscow. Even on Saturday, Trump expressed skepticism over Moscow’s role in the hacking attack, and spoke approvingly of Putin, calling him “very smart” for choosing not to respond to the Obama administration’s move with tit-for-tat sanctions.

Speaking to reporters at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on New Year's Eve, Trump also said that the culprit behind the cyberassault “could be somebody else.”

“I just want them to be sure, because it’s a pretty serious charge, and if you look at the weapons of mass destruction, that was a disaster, and they were wrong,” Trump said. “I also know things that other people don’t know so we cannot be sure. And so I want them to be sure. I think it’s unfair if they don’t know. And I know a lot about hacking. And hacking is a very hard thing to prove.”

When asked what information he was privy to, Trump reportedly said that he would reveal it “on Tuesday or Wednesday.”