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Article snippet: Growing political polarization in the United States is a vulnerability that foreign adversaries are exploiting — and experts worry the trend will accelerate. The threat was brought into sharp relief by the indictment of 13 Russians as part of special counsel MORE’s probe into allegations of collusion between Moscow and the 2016 Trump campaign. The Russian efforts, according to the indictment, were part of a broader effort “to sow discord in the U.S. political system,” achieved mostly by fanning the flames of divisive debates already raging in the country. There is bipartisan concern that the constant tearing of America’s political fabric provides an opening for Russia, or any other hostile power, to exploit. “It’s just so easy in today’s polarized environment to take advantage of the biases that people have, and their addiction to social media, and their seeking out information that confirms their preconceived views,” said former Rep. Jason Altmire (D-Pa.). Altmire, who served three terms in Congress, recently authorized a book on political polarization, called "Dead Center: How Political Polarization Divided America and What We Can Do about It." Former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman, a centrist Republican, expressed a similar view of the threat. “We can’t accept doing nothing — just shrugging our shoulders,” Whitman told The Hill. She said there’s a need to provide states and localities with funding and training to help them identify and rebuff efforts t... Link to the full article to read more