David M Jackson

USA TODAY

Harry Reid and other Democrats aren't just accusing FBI Director James Comey of making Hillary Clinton look bad — they are accusing him of covering up information about Donald Trump and Russian hacking.

“In my communications with you and other top officials in the national security community, it has become clear that you possess explosive information about close ties and coordination between Donald Trump, his top advisers, and the Russian government — a foreign interest openly hostile to the United States, which Trump praises at every opportunity,” Reid said in a Sunday letter to Comey.

The incendiary — and unproven — claim by the Senate minority leader came in a letter in which Reid attacked Comey for his disclosure that the FBI is reviewing new information on the Clinton e-mail case, less than two weeks before Election Day. Reid and other Democrats accused Comey of a "double standard" with regard to the presidential election candidates.

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Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, has also joined the fray, tweeting Monday: "Members of Congress have asked 4 months 4 the FBI to provide us w/ info as re: Trump and Russian govt. connections."

It should be noted that the volatile Reid has a mixed track record of accusations: His claims during the 2012 election that Republican Mitt Romney sometimes paid no taxes turned out to be unfounded.

Clinton, Reid and Democrats have frequently criticized Trump for his seeming praise of Russian leader Vladimir Putin. The Obama administration has accused Russian interests of seeking to influence the election via hacking of the Democratic National Committee and Clinton associates, email thefts that have led to a flurry of embarrassing news stories about the Clinton campaign.

Trump and aides have denied any connection to the Russians and questioned whether they are involved in the hacks of Democrats.

As for Putin, Trump has said that Clinton's bashing of the Russian president is counterproductive, and the U.S. should have a better relationship with its former Cold War rival.

"It'd be nice if we could get along," Trump said last week in Toledo.

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