President Trump defended his bromance with newly re-elected Russian president Vladimir Putin on Twitter after his congratulatory call to Putin, sans any discussion of Russian interference in his own electoral victory, created widespread criticism of Trump for his appeasement of the Russian leader.
Trump’s congratulatory call reinforced the suspicions that the infamous Steele dossier’s reports of Russian possession of blackmail-worthy material on the president may be as accurate as the other already-verified information that the dossier contains. Former CIA Director John Brennan even went on MSNBC yesterday and said that he thought that the Russians “may have something on him personally,”
Trying to explain away his deliberate defiance of his own advisors recommendations, Trump took to Twitter to try to explain why his own twisted thought process outweighed all of the advice he was given to not congratulate the man behind not just behind the hacking of our elections but the extrajudicial murder of a former Russian spy with banned chemical weapons on British soil.
I called President Putin of Russia to congratulate him on his election victory (in past, Obama called him also). The Fake News Media is crazed because they wanted me to excoriate him. They are wrong! Getting along with Russia (and others) is a good thing, not a bad thing…….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 21, 2018
…..They can help solve problems with North Korea, Syria, Ukraine, ISIS, Iran and even the coming Arms Race. Bush tried to get along, but didn’t have the “smarts.” Obama and Clinton tried, but didn’t have the energy or chemistry (remember RESET). PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 21, 2018
Trump is correct that Russia can help with “problems with North Korea, Syria, Ukraine, ISIS, Iran and even the coming Arms Race” since they play a huge role in creating those problems on the first place, but his decision to play nice with Putin, if not merely motivated from his own self-interest in avoiding a provocation that will convince the Kremlin to release any compromising materials that they may have on him, is a sign of weakness and appeasement that any other president would reject as simply a wrongheaded strategy when dealing with a bully like Putin.
Trump’s call was not “peace through strength” as he claims, but more akin to a dog rolling on his back at the foot of his master while he waits for a belly rub and a pat on the head.
We all deserve better.
