With recent explosive reports that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) found that Russia tried to influence the 2016 presidential election, I thought I’d call attention to something George Washington warned the nation about in his 1796 Farewell Address –

“Against the insidious wiles of foreign influence (I conjure you to believe me, fellow-citizens) the jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly awake, since history and experience prove that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of republican government.”

Further investigation is clearly required to determine the full extent to which Russia interfered with the 2016 election. What I will say, though, is that American citizens ought to continue to carefully follow this story and, in the words of Washington “be constantly awake” to “the insidious wiles of foreign influences.”