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Article snippet: MORE’s investigation into Russian election interference for driving a “wedge” between Washington and Moscow. “It’s driven a wedge between us and Russia,” Trump told Fox News’s Sean Hannity in his first one-on-one interview since meeting face-to-face with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland, earlier in the day. “Maybe we’ve just knocked down that wedge.” Trump sparked broad criticism — including from Republicans — earlier Monday by casting doubt on Russian interference in the 2016 election at a press conference alongside Putin following their meeting. The Russian president has repeatedly denied meddling in the election, which he reiterated Monday. “It’s a phony witch hunt, rigged deal,” Trump told Hannity. “We’ve had a phony witch hunt deal drive us apart.” The president also said that Putin described the impact of the Russia investigation on U.S.-Russia relations as “a shame” during their closed-door session. “It’s a sad thing,” Trump said. “It’s a very sad thing for our country to see this.” Trump sparked broad outrage earlier Monday when he refused to denounce Russian interference in the 2016 election — a judgment reached by the U.S. intelligence community. “They said they think it’s Russia. I have President Putin; he just said it’s not Russia,” Trump said during the joint press conference with Putin. “I will say this: I don't see any reason why it would be,” the president continued. “So, I have great confidence in my intelligence people... Link to the full article to read more