Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters said Friday that President Donald Trump was right to address alleged Chinese interference in the 2020 election and an alleged effort by U.S. intelligence officials to conceal information from him.

"First and foremost, I'm glad he gave the speech and addressed this," Gruters told Newsmax's "National Report." "The fact that 220 million voters had their information stolen by China, it certainly undermines the whole system. And it shows us the vulnerability that exists."

Trump said during a prime-time White House address Thursday that China had acquired voter registration records containing information on about 220 million Americans.

The president also alleged that intelligence officials withheld reports about China's election activities from his presidential briefings and "deliberately massaged" the President's Daily Brief to exclude information.

Gruters said both allegations require further investigation.

"I don't know what's worse, the fact that they took the information or the fact that there was government officials that were trying to hide and cover it up," Gruters said. "The president should be outraged. The American people should be outraged. We got to get to the bottom of this. I'm glad he's addressed it and pushed it over to the DOJ so they can look into this even more."

Trump directed the Justice Department to investigate the alleged concealment, though the administration has not announced any criminal charges stemming from the matter.

A 2021 assessment by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence concluded that China considered efforts to influence the 2020 election but ultimately did not deploy them, partly because Beijing viewed the risks of interference as outweighing the potential benefits.

Gruters said the newly released information showed the matter should have been disclosed earlier.

"I think the president's the first person to ever stand up to China and to fight for the American people," Gruters said. "And I think that's why they were probably interfering in it. But I'm glad this is coming out now. It should have came out when it happened, and the fact that they covered it up is a travesty to all Americans."

Gruters also used Trump's address to renew his support for the SAVE America Act, legislation backed by Republicans that would impose proof-of-citizenship requirements for voter registration and make other changes to federal election procedures.

"We got to have fair and free elections," Gruters said. "You know, the democracy is based on the fact that we have the fundamental right to vote and only American citizens vote, and we got to push forward."

The legislation has passed the Republican-controlled House but faces opposition from Senate Democrats, who have argued that its documentation requirements could prevent eligible citizens from registering.

Gruters accused Democrats of opposing the measure because "they want to cheat" and said the RNC is involved in 160 election-related lawsuits across 36 states.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., criticized broadcasters that carried Trump's address, saying they should not provide a platform for statements that undermine confidence in elections.

"AOC makes no sense," Gruters said. "The fact that she's saying that she's being intellectually dishonest, I wish I could say it was intellectually dishonest, but I think it was just dishonest."

Gruters said Republicans must contend with both Democrat candidates and an adversarial media environment heading into the November midterm elections.

"We're fighting for our country every single day," Gruters said. "We have a lot at stake. We have to come together and we have to be successful. There's no other option."

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