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Watch an ex-FBI agent explain how Russian trolls influenced the U.S. election

When people talk about Russian meddling in the U.S. election, they usually mean the hacking of DNC emails or covert communication with members of Donald Trump’s administration. But for former FBI special agent and national security expert Clint Watts, there’s another problem: Russian trolls who spread fake news and propaganda.

That’s because people, the president included, listen to them.

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“If you looked at [Trump’s] Twitter feed this morning, he cited a WikiLeaks release essentially which was conducted by the Russians to attack Hillary Clinton, yet again, even after the election,” Watts said during a live interview Monday with VICE News. “Russia stole information. [Trump] is still using it against his opponent, and he already won the election. So he’s giving Russia a victory even after the election, and they were already winning before.”

Watts joined VICE News days after his candid testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee on March 30 grabbed headlines. He answered questions about how these types of FBI counterintelligence investigations work, Russia’s attempts to influence the U.S. election, and of course, Trump.

If you have questions you’d like answered, let us know in the comments on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter with the hashtag #vicenewslive.

CORRECTION (April 3, 6:09 p.m. ET): A previous version of this article incorrectly called the FBI’s investigation “counterterrorism.” Instead, the investigation is focused on counterintelligence.