--- title: President Obama Defends Response to Russian Election Hacks description: President Obama defended the White House's response to Russian hacks on the election during his last press conference of 2016 canonical: https://time.com/4605260/president-obama-russia-hacking-warn-press-conference/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-12-16T20:25:12.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-07T06:56:52.417Z article:section: Politics og:title: President Obama Warns Russia Over Hacking: Don’t ‘Do This To Us Because We Can Do Stuff to You’ og:description: The president spoke during his last press conference of 2016 og:url: https://time.com/4605260/president-obama-russia-hacking-warn-press-conference/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltda75901d01e6ea6b/6988b34a8fd2eec72d35534f/barack-obama1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4297 og:image:height: 2417 og:image:alt: US-POLITICS-OBAMA og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: President Obama Warns Russia Over Hacking: Don’t ‘Do This To Us Because We Can Do Stuff to You’ twitter:description: The president spoke during his last press conference of 2016 twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltda75901d01e6ea6b/6988b34a8fd2eec72d35534f/barack-obama1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # President Obama Warns Russia Over Hacking: Don’t ‘Do This To Us Because We Can Do Stuff to You’ > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=3c2cc5a8-c202-4b2e-a440-08844625b6d4&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: President Obama Gives Last Presser Of 2016 [Watch (HLS stream): President Obama Gives Last Presser Of 2016](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/Vy5JR1rr.m3u8) (4:21)  _Published 2016-12-16. President Obama spoke during his last press conference at the White House in 2016. He said that the issue of Russian hacking the election should not be partisan._ by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Dec 16, 2016 8:25 PM UTC by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Dec 16, 2016 8:25 PM UTC [President Obama](http://time.com/4602950/president-obama-says-hell-be-invested-in-my-brothers-keeper-work-for-life/) sent a warning to Russia and any other countries looking to engage in cyberattacks against the U.S. during his [final press conference from of 2016](http://time.com/4604652/barack-obama-press-conference-livestream/) on Friday. “Our goal continues to be to send a clear message to Russia or others not do this to us because we can do stuff to you,” he said from the podium in the White House Press Briefing room. The president also defended the White House’s response to the [Russian hacking](http://time.com/4604505/white-house-putin-dnc-hacking-election-russia-trump/) during the 2016 election, saying he did so to protect the integrity of the election. “I wanted to make sure that every body understood that we were playing this thing straight,” Obama said. “Imagine if we had done the opposite. It would have immediately become one more political scrum.” He added: “When I look back in terms of how we handled it. I think we handled it the way it should have been handled,” he said. In part, the president blamed the media for jumping on the news of the leaks, saying that soul-searching needed to be done all around. “This was an obsession that dominated the news coverage,” he said. In an [interview with NPR](http://www.npr.org/2016/12/15/505775550/obama-on-russian-hacking-we-need-to-take-action-and-we-will) on Thursday, President Obama said he had already spoken to [Russian President Vladimir Putin](http://time.com/4587184/vladimir-putin-donald-trump/) about the incidents of hacking, adding that the U.S. must take action if and when foreign governments interfere with the democratic process in America. “Mr. Putin is well aware of my feelings about this, because I spoke to him directly about it,” he said. Shortly before the press conference, the Washington _Post_ reported that there is “strong consensus” among the CIA, FBI and the Director of National Intelligence that [Russians interfered in the U.S. presidential election](http://time.com/4597274/donald-trump-russia-election-intervention-cia/) in part effort to help [President-elect Donald Trump](http://time.com/4566620/barack-obama-donald-trump-white-house-meeting-photo/). There had been suggestions that all three did not agree with that assessment. Trump has rejected the intelligence community’s assessment, saying that it could be any number of actors including hackers in New Jersey in repeated interviews. On Friday, Obama denied that there was any “squabbling” between the two camps as a consequence of Trump’s stance.”There hasn’t been a lot of squabbling,” he said. “What we’ve said are the facts.” “They would be the first to acknowledge that we have done everything we can to make sure they are successful,” Obama said of the Trump team, adding that “cooperation will continue.” President Obama said the issue of Russian hacking the election should not be partisan, adding that he hopes the ” president elect is going to similarly be concerned that we won’t have potential foreign influence in our election process” going forward. President Obama spoke during his last press conference at the White House in 2016\. Later on Friday, he and the first family will travel to Hawaii for their annual Christmas vacation. President Obama noted that the end of the year press conference usually gives him an opportunity to review the progress the U.S. has made over the past year, but on Friday the president went through the progress he’s said the country has made throughout his two terms in office, noting the unemployment rate, wage growth, and the fact that more than 20 million people have gained insurance under the Affordable Care Act. “By so many measures our country is stronger and more prosperous than it was when I took office,” Obama said, adding that he’ll continue to work on addressing the ongoing issues including poverty and gun violence when he leaves office. The president also noted that there are ongoing issues including the ongoing crisis in Aleppo. The president called the Syrian civil war one of the “hardest issues that I’ve faced as president,” and said the world is “united in horror” about what’s going on there. He called for a united, international humanitarian response and a cease-fire. “The Assad regime cannot slaughter its way to legitimacy,” Obama said. ## Transcript Good afternoon. This is the most wonderful press conference of the year. [ LAUGH ] I've got a list of who's been naughty and nice, to call on. But, let me first make a couple of quick points, and then I'll take your question. For years, we've worked to stop the civil war in Syria, and alleviate human suffering It is one of the hardest issue that I faced as president, the world as we speak, united and four the savage assault of the russian and the Iranian allies on the city of elope. We have seen a deliberate seen. Innocent civilians. We've seen relentless targeting of humanitarian workers and medical personnel. Entire neighborhoods reduced to rubble and dust. There are continuing reports of civilians being executed. These are all horrific violations of international law. Responsibility for this brutality lies in one place alone, with the Assad regime and its allies Russia and Iran. And this blood and these atrocities are on their hands. We all know what needs to happen. There needs to be an impartial international observer force in Aleppo. They can help coordinate an orderly evacuation through safe corridors. What we've simply said is the facts, which are that based on uniform intelligence assessments, the Russians were responsible for hacking the DNC. And that as a consequence it is important for us to review all elements of that and make sure that we are preventing that kind of interference through cyber attacks in the future. My hope is that the president elect Is going to similarly be concerned with making sure that we don't have potential foreign influence in our election process. I don't think any American wants that. And that shouldn't be a source of an argument. I haven't shared, previously, private conversations I've had with the President- Elect. I will say that they have been Cordial and in some cases have involved me making some pretty specific suggestions about how to ensure that regardless of our obvious deep disagreements about policy Maybe I can transmit some thoughts about maintaining the effectiveness, integrity, cohesion of the office, a various democratic institutions. I've said before I could be prouder Secretary Clinton for her outstanding service. Think she's worked tirelessly on behalf of the American people and I don't think she was treated fairly during the election. I think the coverage of her and the issues was troubling. Mike, I always feel responsible. [ BLANK_AUDIO ] I Felt responsible when kids were being shot by snipers, I felt responsible when millions of people had been displaced. [ BLANK_AUDIO ] I feel responsible for murder and slaughter that's taken place in South Sudan that's not being reported on. Partly because there's not as much social media being generated from there. [ BLANK_AUDIO ] There are places around the world where horrible things are happening, and because of my office, because I'm President of the United States, I feel responsible. I ask myself every single day is there something I could do that would save lives and make a difference? 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