Amid Struggle To Protect 2020 Election, A 2nd Conflict Rages — Over Transparency

Two secret wars are underway simultaneously over attack and defense of the 2020 presidential election. This week, each one broke into the open again.

The first war is an intelligence and national security operation aimed at protecting American election infrastructure, political campaigns and the U.S. information environment from foreign interference. The second one is a political struggle over how much Americans learn about the first.

Events this week further underscored how far the U.S. has traveled since the infamous 2016 election, which played out without much appreciation in real time about how events were roiling behind the scenes. That understanding only developed in retrospect through official investigations.

This year, Americans are aware as never before about foreign schemes, official countermeasures and the second-order efforts by U.S. politicians to shape the public's impressions about it all.