Ahead of Donald Trump’s scheduled meeting with Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Alaska this week, The New York Times appeared to give the American president something new to talk about with his Russian counterpart. The Times reported that U.S. investigators have uncovered evidence that Russia “is at least partly responsible for a recent hack of the computer system that manages federal court documents, including highly sensitive records with information that could reveal sources and people charged with national security crimes.”
The report, which has not been independently verified by MSNBC or NBC News, went on to note that administrators with the court system recently informed Justice Department officials, clerks and chief judges in federal courts that “persistent and sophisticated cyber threat actors have recently compromised sealed records.”
Those with sensitive documents within the system have apparently been advised to quickly remove them. The internal memo to Justice Department officials and staffers from the courts system, according to the Times, added: “This remains an URGENT MATTER that requires immediate action.”
This was, in other words, a rather serious cyberoffensive. The day after the Times’ account was published, a reporter asked Trump about the story, and as CNBC reported, the Republican didn’t appear to care.
President Donald Trump on Wednesday shrugged off a question about a new report that Russia is at least partially responsible for hacking the electronic system that manages U.S. federal court case documents. ‘Are you surprised?’ Trump said during a press event at the Kennedy Center, in Washington, D.C. ‘They hack in, that’s what they do,’ he said about Russia.
After noting that he “could” bring this up during his scheduled talks with Putin, Trump added that Russian cyberattackers are “good at it.”
REPORTER: There's new reporting that Russians have hacked into computer systems that manage US federal courts documents. Do you plan to bring it up with Putin?TRUMP: I guess I could. Are you surprised? They hack in — what's what they do
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2025-08-13T16:03:47.211Z
In other words, there’s reason to believe a foreign adversary launched an offensive targeting highly sensitive U.S. court records, including cases related to national security — and when asked about this, the American president shrugged with indifference.
Trump could’ve at least offered some kind of half-hearted condemnation, but he couldn’t bring himself to bother. The developments came on the heels of Trump backing off threatened sanctions on Russia — for the fifth time — and extending an invitation to Putin to come to American soil, giving the accused war criminal the validation he was looking for. It also follows the American president urging G7 leaders to reward Putin by welcoming him back into the international group, while blaming G7 members for having hurt Russia’s feelings. Trump often wonders why his critics accuse him of being weak on Russia, but it’s really not that complicated.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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