the committee will come to order. thank you, mr. chairman. director, i have to say for me it s sad to see an ongoing and desperate attempt to please the impeached president that some are continuing to malign the extraordinary men and women of the fbi. i want to begin by saying thank you to you for your extraordinary service to our country and to the brave men and women of the fbi. the survival of our democracy is directly dependent on our ability to protect the integrity of our elections. it s clear the american people get to decide who will lead the country, not a foreign power. i hear regularly about what is being done to secure the 2020 election. you said, director, back in december that russia represents the most significant threat to the election cycle itself. is that still your assessment? yes, it is. would you just describe what steps the bureau has taken to investigate, deter and counter russian and other foreign government attempts to interfere in our elections