May 2, 2024

The Queens County Citizen

Complete Canadian News World

Donald Trump has just made Vladimir Putin very happy

Cooper: Any candidate would say what Sanders said

“I said, ‘You know, this is a very good time, because everything is falling out now and appearing in a line that shows how much of a lie this investigation is, it is a total disgrace, and I will not be surprised if you see many things happening for several next week, “‘ Trump told reporters about his conversation with Putin. “This is only one piece of the puzzle that is very dishonest.”

You don’t need to think hard to imagine the big smile on Putin’s face when he hears those words from Trump. Because what it means is that Trump continues to be unable to separate the finding that Russia is actively trying to interfere in the last presidential election from the idea that acknowledging that fact somehow robbed him of his credit for victory.

The two things are, of course, not mutually exclusive. Russia interfered in the election to help Trump and hurt Hillary Clinton, and Trump wins.

The President’s inability to understand that nuance means that he continues to reject the findings of the intelligence community, the investigation of special advisor Robert Mueller and the Republican-led Senate Intelligence Committee – all of which concluded that, yes, Russia is running a broad and deep campaign to interfere in the election 2016 and, yes, it aims to help Trump, who they believe is better for their interests than Clinton. (To be clear: None of the investigations has produced definitive proof that the voting without a vote was changed by Russian efforts.)

And unfortunately, this is not the first time Trump has rejected the findings of various investigations when Putin was present.

In July 2018, at a summit in Helsinki, Finland, Trump and Putin emerged from a private meeting for almost two hours and took questions from the press. Asked directly whether he blamed Russia for electoral interference, Trump replied: “I hold both countries accountable. I think the United States is stupid. I think we are all stupid. … And I think we should all blame.” Then, when pressed on the fact that the intelligence community had concluded that Russia intervened to help him and hurt Clinton, Trump said: “So I have great confidence in my intelligence people, but I will tell you that President Putin is very strong and strong in his rebuttal today. “

That was – and is – music to Putin’s ears. And that’s because Trump’s blind spot on Russian intervention isn’t just a matter that seems backward. This has big consequences for the upcoming 2020 elections.

“We consider that foreign actors will see the US elections in 2020 as an opportunity to advance their interests,” said Director of National Intelligence and Coats in January 2019. “We hope they improve their abilities and add new tactics as they learn.” from each other’s experiences and efforts in previous elections. “
In a written statement submitted to Congress at almost the same time, Coats was more specific. “Moscow might use additional tools of influence – such as spreading disinformation, conducting hack-and-leak operations, or manipulating data – in more targeted ways to influence US policy, actions and elections,” he wrote.

It’s simple: Russia views its disruption in the 2016 elections as a huge success. And they plan to take it to the next level by 2020.

Almost everyone in the US government understands this fact – except for the President of the United States. The problem is that his opinions are far more important than those of others. As in, Trump sets priorities for his administration. And he also sets what is not a priority.

“In the months before Kirstjen Nielsen was forced to resign, he tried to focus the White House on one of the highest priorities as homeland security secretary: preparing for new and different forms of Russian interference in the 2020 elections.

“President Trump’s chief of staff told him not to bring him in front of the president …

“… Mick Mulvaney, White House chief of staff, explained that Mr. Trump still equates any public discussion about Russian election activities that slander with questions about the validity of his victory. According to a senior government official, Mr Mulvaney said it was” not a good subject and should be guarded below the level. ‘ “

That is an astonishing thing. And talking about how Trump’s inability to see the truth of what Russia is doing in 2016 is seriously hampering our government’s efforts to combat anything that will happen in November.

READ  'Best of humanity': Indonesian fishermen rescue stranded Rohingya | News

Even more troubling is that Trump has confirmed Putin – on two occasions! – Personally aware of his skepticism about the role Russia played in the last election. It was truly a dream scenario for the Russian president.

About The Author