President Barack Obama’s order to expel 35 diplomats and send them back to Russia without love seems decisive, especially compared to his previous tactic of quiet words at an international summit in China.
It also seems reasonable. The hacking of the Democratic National Committee’s computing network was embarrassing for the party’s candidate, Hillary Clinton, and her rival, Donald Trump, capitalised on it. Many different US departments – from the US Department of Homeland Security to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence – have scrutinised the hacking allegations. All 17 intelligence agencies are in agreement that the hacks were directed by the Russian government. In other words, regardless of the impact, a foreign power appears to have directly attempted to influence the outcome of the presidential race.
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