President Donald J. Trump spoke with reporters on Air Force One after rubbing shoulders with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Danang, Vietnam on Saturday.
According to the Washington Post, when asked about President Putin, President Trump responded that they had met briefly for a photo shoot, but that they had spent more time later at a multi-national roundtable discussion.
Trump talked about his relationship with Putin as a good relationship and that they have “a very good feeling for each other."
In the transcript presented by the Washington Post, Trump told reporters twelve times that Putin claimed he “didn’t do it." Trump said with his usual habit of repeating, that Putin claims his innocence and did not meddle in our election, and seems certain Putin did not do what the press and intelligence reports are saying he did, reiterating that Putin claims he "absolutely" did not meddle.
Donald Trump displayed his infatuation with the Russian dictator and kleptocratic oligarch and his admiration of Putin's intelligence, inferring that Putin is too smart for US Intelligence agencies and investigators. Trump uses reverse logic basing his belief on Putin telling the truth because if he had meddled he would have been too smart to ever get caught. President Trump is convinced that Vladimir Putin is innocent, because apparently every time he sees Putin, the Russian dictator assures Trump that he didn't meddle.
Trump is worried Putin is insulted
Several times while speaking with reporters yesterday, Trump expressed his worry that Vladimir Putin is insulted by the reports and allegations by our intelligence community that Russia’s meddling came straight from the top.
Are we really supposed to be worried about Vladimir Putin’s hurt feelings? In Russia, if you hurt Putin’s feelings, you are either jailed or die mysteriously from "natural" causes.
Trumps sees the Russian investigation as the 'Artificial Democrat Barrier'
This so-called artificial Democratic barrier cramps Trump’s style. He claims it gets in his way.
The reason it is artificial is that, in his mind, it is a fabrication by Hillary Clinton, the Democratic National Committee, the Obama administration led FBI, CIA and National Security Council. This artificial barrier gets in the way when he wants to get down to business with Vladimir Putin. It is also the perfect scapegoat for his administration’s inability to achieve any meaningful legislative accomplishments.
Trump’s propensity for creating a smoke screen by denigrating Hillary Clinton and the Democratic party came up as always, claiming she doesn’t have what it takes to build good relationships with world leaders despite her years as Secretary of State.
And worst of all, Trump again claimed that the Democrat artificial barrier was a personal insult to Vladimir Putin. The investigation supposedly has nothing to do with determining how the Russians hacked the DNC, influenced our election, nor does it have anything to do with stopping it from ever happening again. In Donald Trump’s eyes, it’s all fake news.
Trump sides with Putin over the FBI, CIA and other United States intelligence and National Security agencies
Earlier reports have stated that seventeen agencies believe with high confidence that Russia meddled in our election. Trump said yesterday that it was really only three, calling former CIA Director John Brennan, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and former FBI Director James Comey “political hacks,” and went further calling Comey a proven “liar” and a “leaker.”
Ever since the report came out that Russia meddled in our 2016 Presidential election Donald Trump has sided with Vladimir Putin as the poor victim of fake news spread by the so-called “dishonest” press media and the Democratic Party, or possibly a "four hundred pound" man in bed.
According to the Washington Post's account of Trump's statements, he believes Vladimir Putin's claims of innocence, yet he doesn't believe his own nation's intelligence community.
The US intelligence community has been saying for more than a year, that there is no doubt, Russia meddled in our election. According to the Washington Post, both Brennan and Clapper feel Trump is being "played" by Vladimir Putin and appeared on CNN's "State of the Union" today to answer Trump's charge that they are "hacks."
Still, because Putin denies doing so “vehemently.” Apparently, that’s good enough for Trump, and he feels he should be able to move on to more important things like destroying health care and giving himself and his family a huge tax cut.
There is only one way we will know who is telling the truth, Vladimir Putin, or the United States intelligence and national security and counter-intelligence experts who say the Russian meddling came all the way from the top. We need to allow Special Counsel Robert Mueller to pursue his investigation through to the end without inhibition by either Congress or the White House.
This is not about a popularity contest or Miss Universe pageant. This investigation goes to the very heart of our democracy and our sovereignty as a nation. In the end, if Trump and his advisors have proven all their denials of collusion with Russia to be in vain, that will be a good thing for our country. But if in fact those denials are proven to hold up, then nobody who told those lies should be spared the full legal consequences for breaking our laws. Nobody is above the law, not even President Donald J. Trump.
