"No collusion." That's the reaction of President Donald Trump to the indictment of 13 Russians and three Russian companies for plotting to meddle in the 2016 election.
The president tweeted Friday that the indictment shows, "The Trump campaign did nothing wrong – no collusion!"
The Russians were charged Friday with using social media propaganda aimed at helping Trump and harming the prospects of Democrat Hillary Clinton.
Trump notes that the Russian influence campaign is alleged to have started in 2014, "long before" he declared his candidacy.
He says, "The results of the election were not impacted."
In fact, while prosecutors have not alleged that meddling altered the election's outcome, the indictment does not rule it out.
Trump said "far-fetched theories" about collusion in the 2016 election "only serve to further the agendas of bad actors, like Russia."
Trump said "it's time we stop the outlandish partisan attacks … we must unite as Americans to protect the integrity of our democracy and our elections."
READ MORE:
- Mueller probe indicts 13 Russian nationals for meddling in 2016 elections
- Read the full indictment of 13 Russian nationals for 2016 election interference
- A Russian propaganda group purchased ads on Facebook during the 2016 election. Here's what that means.
- Why are Russian trolls spreading online hoaxes in the U.S.?
- Inside Russia's propaganda machine