WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The United States should have expelled Russia’s ambassador or senior intelligence officer prior to the 2016 presidential election, Hurd said on Wednesday.
"At a minimum, we should have kicked the Russian ambassador out of the United States or the senior intelligence officer," Hurd said in an interview with CNN.
The Republican lawmaker called for a congressional investigation into groups he alleged were connected to Moscow and responsible for hacks of the Democratic National Committee and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee during the election season.
Furthermore, he stressed that the United States should respond strongly to the alleged breach.
However, Hurd said it was clear that Russia had not manipulated or influenced the integrity of the vote.
Russia has repeatedly denied it interfered in the US election, calling Washington’s accusations absurd and an attempt to distract the American public from domestic issues.