Obama points finger at Putin for cyber attacks on U.S. election

U.S. President Barack Obama participates in his last news conference of the year at the White House before leaving for his annual Hawaiian Christmas holiday in Washington, U.S., December 16, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Friday strongly suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally authorized the computer hacks of Democratic Party emails that American intelligence officials say were aimed at helping Republican Donald Trump win the Nov. 8 election.

But with only a month left in office, during a sombre press conference before leaving for a family holiday in Hawaii, Obama spoke despairingly about the "nasty" state of U.S. politics, saying the chasm between Democrats and Republicans has made it possible for Russia to cause mischief.