FILE PHOTO: Rep. Adam Schiff (R-CA) arrives for a closed-door briefing on Syria for the U.S. House of Representatives on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., April 17, 2018. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top Democrat on the U.S. House of Representatives intelligence panel said President Donald Trump’s comments in Helsinki on Monday essentially gave Russian President Vladimir Putin permission to interfere in November’s midterm election.

“President Trump just attacked our intelligence agencies and law enforcement for doing their jobs while standing next to a dictator who intervened in our election to help elect Trump,” Democratic U.S. Representative Adam Schiff said on Twitter. “Putin will take this as a green light to interfere in 2018, and it is. Cowardly and shameful.”