Trump prepares to become president … of Putin’s fan club
Trump prepares to become president … of Putin’s fan club
01/02/17 08:00 AM By Steve Benen
A few years ago, Donald Trump asked via Twitter whether Russian President Vladimir Putin might be willing to become his “new best friend.”
The answer, it turns out, is yes.
Asked last week about reports that Russia launched an espionage operation to subvert the U.S. presidential election and help put him in the White House, Trump told reporters, “I think we ought to get on with our lives.” On Friday, after the Obama administration announced new sanctions against Russia, Trump once again sided with Putin’s government, saying in a written statement, “It’s time for our country to move on to bigger and better things.”
As we discussed the other day, the president-elect is effectively declaring that he does not care about a foreign adversary’s attack on our democracy. For all of Trump’s rhetoric about “peace through strength,” the Republican is signaling weakness to the world: launch an attack on the United States, and the incoming president would rather “move on” than act.
When Putin announced over the holiday weekend that Russia would not impose fresh sanctions of its own in retaliation, Trump gushed over the autocratic leader, calling the decision a “great move,” and adding, “I always knew he was very smart!” (Trump pinned the tweet so it would be the first thing readers saw on his Twitter profile.)
READ MORE: http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/tr...
01/02/17 08:00 AM By Steve Benen
A few years ago, Donald Trump asked via Twitter whether Russian President Vladimir Putin might be willing to become his “new best friend.”
The answer, it turns out, is yes.
Asked last week about reports that Russia launched an espionage operation to subvert the U.S. presidential election and help put him in the White House, Trump told reporters, “I think we ought to get on with our lives.” On Friday, after the Obama administration announced new sanctions against Russia, Trump once again sided with Putin’s government, saying in a written statement, “It’s time for our country to move on to bigger and better things.”
As we discussed the other day, the president-elect is effectively declaring that he does not care about a foreign adversary’s attack on our democracy. For all of Trump’s rhetoric about “peace through strength,” the Republican is signaling weakness to the world: launch an attack on the United States, and the incoming president would rather “move on” than act.
When Putin announced over the holiday weekend that Russia would not impose fresh sanctions of its own in retaliation, Trump gushed over the autocratic leader, calling the decision a “great move,” and adding, “I always knew he was very smart!” (Trump pinned the tweet so it would be the first thing readers saw on his Twitter profile.)
READ MORE: http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/tr...
