The Democratic National Committee is stepping up to combat fake news in the 2018 midterms. Since the Trump administration refuses to take action to protect our democracy and the integrity of our elections, the DNC is filling the void to tackle one of the greatest threats facing the electorate: the proliferation of fake news propagated by propaganda bots.

In an exclusive report, NBC News’ Chris Jansing sat down with DNC Chief Technology Officer Raffi Krikorian to learn about the new tools and resources in development at the DNC to help protect and educate voters in 2018.

WATCH HERE

Despite that fact that Trump’s top intelligence officials have repeatedly warned that Russia is already trying to interfere in the upcoming election, Trump continues to do next to nothing to prevent another attack on our democratic process.

Trump’s top intelligence appointees said they had not been “directed by the president” or granted authority to address Russian interference. 

CNN: “US Cyber Command chief Adm. Mike Rogers told lawmakers on Tuesday that he has not been granted the authority by President Donald Trump to disrupt Russian election hacking operations where they originate.”

Washington Post: “FBI Director Christopher A. Wray said the bureau is undertaking ‘a lot of specific activities’ to counter Russian meddling but was ‘not specifically directed by the president.’”

Trump’s top national security officials warned that Trump has left the United States “behind the curve” in developing policy to prevent election interference in the midterms.

Associated Press: “In a hearing on global threats this month, National Intelligence Director Dan Coats said, ‘There should be no doubt that Russia perceives that its past efforts have been successful and views the 2018 midterm US elections as a potential target for Russian influence operations.’ He said, ‘We are behind the curve in coming to a policy’ to penalize or stop those who interfere.”

Fox News: “Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Tuesday warned the United States is ill-prepared to prevent Russian interference in the upcoming midterms, as it was in the 2016 general election. […] Russia is already attempting to interfere ‘in the U.S. in 2018’ ahead of congressional midterm elections as it did in the 2016 general election, he said.”

A majority of Americans, as well as many state and local officials, were concerned that Trump was not doing enough to safeguard future elections against foreign interference.

CNN: “About 6 in 10 Americans say Donald Trump is not taking seriously enough the investigation into Russian efforts to influence the US presidential election, and about the same share lack confidence the president is doing enough to prevent foreign interference in future elections, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS.”

Associated Press: “Some state and local officials have expressed concerns about Homeland Security efforts to increase communication and cooperation with states about election systems. They have complained that it took the federal government nearly a year to inform them whether their states had been targeted by Russian hackers.”

The Trump administration neglected to spend State Department funding allocated to fight election meddling.

New York Times: “State Dept. Was Granted $120 Million to Fight Russian Meddling. It Has Spent $0.”

New York Times: “As Russia’s virtual war against the United States continues unabated with the midterm elections approaching, the State Department has yet to spend any of the $120 million it has been allocated since late 2016 to counter foreign efforts to meddle in elections or sow distrust in democracy.”

The Trump administration missed deadlines to implement congressionally-mandated sanctions against Russia for election meddling.

CNN: “In enacting the sanctions, the administration is finally meeting a congressional mandate to impose measures punishing Moscow for its cyber intrusion. The delay had led to questions over President Donald Trump's willingness to punish Moscow.”

Politico: “White House to Congress: Russia sanctions not needed now.”