By Theodore Schleifer CNN
Civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis says he doesn’t see President-elect Donald Trump as a “legitimate” commander in chief following Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
“I don’t see this President-elect as a legitimate president,” Lewis, a Georgia Democrat, told NBC News’ Chuck Todd in a clip released Friday. “I think the Russians participated in helping this man get elected. And they helped destroy the candidacy of Hillary Clinton.”
Lewis also said he planned to skip Trump’s inauguration next week, which he said would be the first ceremony he would not attend.
“You cannot be at home with something that you feel that is wrong,” Lewis said.
Clinton’s former aides have been reluctant to use similar language, avoiding passing judgment on whether Trump was “legitimate.”
The intelligence community has argued in an official report that the Russians, at the direction of President Vladimir Putin, sought to influence the campaign and boost Trump, a conclusion that Trump has vehemently disputed.
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