Why hack the Olympics?
https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/05/winter_olympics_russian_attacks/
Italy claims cyberattacks 'of Russian origin' are pelting Winter Olympics
Italy's foreign minister says the country has already started swatting away cyberattacks from Russia targeting the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics.
Antonio Tajani told reporters on Wednesday that a series of cyberattacks targeted some of the government's foreign offices, including the one in the US capital.
He said they were "of Russian origin," but did not specify whether this appeared to be state-backed activity, nor provide details about the nature of the attacks, AP reported.
… Thirteen Russians will compete in Milano Cortina, but they must do so as independents – they cannot fly the Russian flag.
For decades, Russia has used sporting events, especially the Olympics, for political gain. From the 1950s onward, many believe that Russia saw the Games as a means to assert the value of socialism, with the rivalry between the USSR and the capitalist US pervading most major events for three decades.
Will “elections Trump’s way” become “voting Trump’s way?”
https://www.bespacific.com/trumps-call-to-nationalize-elections-adds-to-state-officials-alarm/
Trump’s Call to ‘Nationalize’ Elections Adds to State Officials’ Alarm
The New York Times Gift Article – “President Trump’s declaration that he wants to “nationalize” voting in the United States arrives at a perilous moment for the relationship between the federal government and top election officials across the country. While the executive branch has no explicit authority over elections, generations of secretaries of state have relied on the intelligence gathering and cybersecurity defenses, among other assistance, that only the federal government can provide. But as Mr. Trump has escalated efforts to involve the administration in election and voting matters while also eliminating programs designed to fortify these systems against attacks, secretaries of state and other top state election officials, including some Republican ones, have begun to sound alarms. Some see what was once a crucial partnership as frayed beyond repair. They point to Mr. Trump’s push to overturn the 2020 election, his continued false claims that the contest was rigged, the presence of election deniers in influential government positions and his administration’s attempts to dig up evidence of widespread voter fraud that year, even though none has ever been found. The worry, these election officials say, is that Mr. Trump and his allies might try to interfere in or cast doubt on this year’s midterm elections. The president is urgently trying to defend the Republican majorities in Congress, and the political environment has appeared to grow less friendly to his party.
On Tuesday, a day after Mr. Trump’s comments about wanting to “nationalize” elections, Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said the president was referring to federal election legislation in Congress. Yet after Ms. Leavitt’s attempt to clarify Mr. Trump’s initial remarks, he doubled down on his assertion that the federal government should oversee state elections. “Look at some of the places — that horrible corruption on elections — and the federal government should not allow that,” he said. “The federal government should get involved.” Even before Mr. Trump’s latest remarks, state officials had pointed to other evidence of his aims regarding elections. The F.B.I. seized ballots and other 2020 voting records last week from an election office in Fulton County, Ga., which on Wednesday challenged the seizure in court. The Justice Department has sued nearly half of the states in the country to try to obtain their full voter rolls with Americans’ personal information in an effort to build a national voter database.
Media Matters – Steve Bannon: “You’re damn right we’re gonna have ICE surround the polls come November. Let’s put you on notice again. ICE is going to be around the polls in the 2026 midterm elections.”
