Eliza Collins

USA TODAY

Arizona Republican Rep. Trent Franks isn’t sure if Russia was behind the email hacks that roiled the election. But if they were, he says, the release of information could be considered a public service.

“I’m all for doing what’s necessary to protect the electorate but there’s no suggestion that Russia hacked into our voting systems or anything like that,” Franks said on MSNBC Thursday. “But the bottom line is if they succeeded, if Russia succeeded in giving the American people information that was accurate, then they merely did what the media should have done,” he added.

Franks' comments came just before the Obama Administration announced sanctions against Russian officials over allegations that they hacked Democratic officials to affect the 2016 election.

President-elect Donald Trump — who has still not said he believes Russia was behind the hacks which resulted in Democratic officials’ emails being released — said Americans should stop dwelling on how the information was released.

"I think we ought to get on with our lives," Trump told reporters when asked about Russian sanctions Wednesday night. “I think that computers have complicated lives very greatly. The whole age of computer has made it where nobody knows exactly what is going on. We have speed, we have a lot of other things, but I'm not sure we have the kind the security we need."

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