"We should be working with Russia, and all of these sinister sounding words, trying to make people look at Russia as the threat detracts from our ability to protect us from the real threat which is radical Islamic terrorism… Russia faces the same threat as do our Western democratic friends in Western Europe," Rohrabacher said.
According to the congressman, the only power that intentionally wants to harm the United States are Islamic terrorists, not countries like Russia.
"You’ve got the news media out there, which should be seeking truth and has become a propaganda tool for a particular political move in this country that is aimed at creating hostility between the United States and Russia," Rohrabacher said.
The Democratic Party, including the "political powers" on Capitol Hill, are manipulating the power structure, and especially the media, in Washington to craft a false narrative for the US public, the congressman added.
For several months, US media outlets, such as the CNN broadcaster or The New York Times, and a number of politicians, including former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, have been making statements about Russia's alleged meddling in the 2016 US election by way of hacking. Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin, have repeatedly said that Moscow had not interfered in the election.
On Tuesday, US State Secretary Rex Tillerson said that while the relationship between the United States and Russia continues to suffer considerable stress, the two countries must focus on addressing mutual interests such as fight against Islamic terrorism. The US diplomat also added that he believed the US people wanted to have good relations with Russia.