WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Donald Trump while in Vietnam met up with and believed Russian President Vlad Putin as he again denied meddling in American elections, but a top Republican Senator says this is dangerous path.
President Trump bumped into Vladimir Putin in recent days in Vietnam and claims to have asked him again if he meddled in American elections; Putin denied it, and President Trump says he believes Putin. Investigations into the matter continue to dominate headlines in the U.S. and many say there is no doubt the Russians meddled – but the President is not concerned and seems to want to be Mr. Putin’s friend.
“When will all the haters and fools out there realize that having a good relationship with Russia is a good thing, not a bad thing,” President Trump tweeted Saturday. “There (sic) always playing politics – bad for our country. I want to solve North Korea, Syria, Ukraine, terrorism, and Russia can greatly help!”
U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement today on President Trump’s comments about Vladimir Putin:
UPI/Kevin Dietsch
“President Trump today stated that he believed Vladimir Putin is being sincere when he denies Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and reiterated that he hopes to cooperate with Russia in Syria.
“There’s nothing ‘America First’ about taking the word of a KGB colonel over that of the American intelligence community. There’s no ‘principled realism’ in cooperating with Russia to prop up the murderous Assad regime, which remains the greatest obstacle to a political solution that would bring an end to the bloodshed in Syria. Vladimir Putin does not have America’s interests at heart. To believe otherwise is not only naive but also places our national security at risk.”
Some say Putin – again, a former KGB spy – is “playing” President Trump, or the American President is outright lying about the Russian interference.
Ted Lieu, a California Congressman, says he has “seen the classified information on Russian hacking. @realDonaldTrump has received classified briefings. I can tell you that @POTUS is LYING. Trump knows the Kremlin hacked America last year.”
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/929503641014112256
TRUMP ABOARD AF1 on accusations of election meddling: “This artificial Democratic hit job gets in the way and that’s a shame. Because people will die because of it. And it’s a pure hit job.” pic.twitter.com/mr3hOYLsrQ
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) November 11, 2017
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/929509950811881472
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/929503025512693760
I have seen the classified information on Russian hacking. @realDonaldTrump has received classified briefings. I can tell you that @POTUS is LYING. Trump knows the Kremlin hacked America last year. https://t.co/gq9gAeLlnf
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) November 11, 2017
