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president donald trump

Lights Go Out In White House Cabinet Room As Trump Voices ‘Full Faith’ In Intel Agencies

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump wanted to make an important point. And then the lights went out. Trump was saying Tuesday that he has “full faith” in the U.S. intelligence agencies in the aftermath of his Helsinki news conference when the lights in the White House Cabinet Room dimmed and briefly went out, leaving the room mostly in darkness. As Pres Trump was talking about he summit with Putin, the lights went out in the Cabinet Room, but came back on a few seconds later. pic.twitter.com/aGOWWx6sJn — Mark Knoller (@markknoller) July 17, 2018 “Whoops, they just turned off the lights. That must be the intelligence agencies,” the president joked to members of his Cabinet, lawmakers and the assembled media. As the lights were quickly switched on, Trump asked if everyone was OK. “That was strange. But that’s OK,” he said, returning to his statement. WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 17: The lights temporally go out in the Cabinet Room as U.S. President Donald Trump talks about his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a meeting with House Republicans at the White House on July 17, 2018 in Washington, DC. Following a diplomatic summit in Helsinki, Trump faced harsh criticism after a press conference with Putin where he would not say whether he believed Russia meddled with the 2016 presidential election. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images) Trump was trying to make clear after his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin that he fully supports the U.S intelligence community and its finding that Russia interfered in the 2016 elections. His remarks came during a meeting with Vice President Mike Pence, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and several members of Congress, including Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas. The president was discussing Republican tax legislation that’s expected to be considered in September. (© Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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Lights Go Out In White House Cabinet Room As Trump Voices ‘Full Faith’ In Intel Agencies

July 17, 2018 0 comment

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Washington Reacts With Dismay To Trump-Putin Press Conference

written by YoungGrandi

(CBS News) — Republicans and Democrats alike are dismayed by President Trump’s comments at his joint press conference with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Monday. Mr. Trump stunned onlookers by repeatedly defending Putin during the press conference from allegations that Russia interfered in the 2016 election and casting doubt on conclusions to that effect made by U.S. intelligence agencies. Ari Fleischer, a Republican and prominent Trump defender who served as former President George W. Bush’s press secretary, said that while he still does not believe Mr. Trump colluded with Russia in the 2016 elections, he understands now why people think he’s being blackmailed. “I continue to believe there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. But when Trump so easily and naively accepts Putin’s line about not being involved, I can understand why [Democrats] think Putin must have the goods on him,” Fleischer tweeted. I continue to believe there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. But when Trump so easily and naively accepts Putin’s line about not being involved, I can understand why Ds think Putin must have the goods on him. — Ari Fleischer (@AriFleischer) July 16, 2018 It was a sentiment echoed by Democratic leaders Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer. Just several days ago, 12 Russians were indicted for attacking our democracy. Today, America's so-called leader embarrassingly failed to stand up to the person who spearheaded the attack. Seriously, what does Putin have on Trump that's he's so afraid? — Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) July 16, 2018 Millions of Americans will continue to wonder if the only possible explanation for this dangerous behavior is the possibility that President Putin holds damaging information over President Trump. — Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) July 16, 2018 In a series of tweets after the press conference, South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, an ally of Mr. Trump, called the meeting with Putin a “missed opportunity” that would be perceived by “weakness” by Russia. Graham also said that, if it were up to him, the soccer ball Putin gave Mr. Trump would be checked for “listening devices” and never be taken into the White House. Finally, if it were me, I’d check the soccer ball for listening devices and never allow it in the White House. — Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) July 16, 2018 Retiring Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake, one of Mr. Trump’s most outspoken critics in the GOP , called the press conference “shameful.” I never thought I would see the day when our American President would stand on the stage with the Russian President and place blame on the United States for Russian aggression. This is shameful. — Jeff Flake (@JeffFlake) July 16, 2018 Nebraska Republican Sen. Ben Sasse, a sometime critic of Mr. Trump, took issue with the president’s claim that the U.S. is in part to blame for the state of Russo-American relations. Following up on a tweet he posted early Monday morning, Mr. Trump said at the press conference that he holds “both countries responsible” for tensions between the nuclear powers. “This is bizarre and flat-out wrong,” Sasse said in a statement. “The United States is not to blame. America wants a good relationship with the Russian people but Vladimir Putin and his thugs are responsible for Soviet-style aggression. When the President plays these moral equivalence games, he gives Putin a propaganda win he desperately needs.” Democrats also criticized Mr. Trump’s performance. John O. Brennan, who ran the CIA under President Obama, called Mr. Trump’s comments at the press conference “nothing short of treasonous.” “Donald Trump’s press conference performance in Helsinki rises to & exceeds the threshold of ‘high crimes & misdemeanors.’ It was nothing short of treasonous,” Brennan tweeted. “Not only were Trump’s comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican Patriots: Where are you???” Donald Trump’s press conference performance in Helsinki rises to & exceeds the threshold of “high crimes & misdemeanors.” It was nothing short of treasonous. Not only were Trump’s comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican Patriots: Where are you??? — John O. Brennan (@JohnBrennan) July 16, 2018 © 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Washington Reacts With Dismay To Trump-Putin Press Conference

July 16, 2018 0 comment

news

Trump And Putin Summit Underway In Helsinki

written by DieterEdmondsto

(CNN) — US President Donald Trump told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday that he hopes their two countries can have an “extraordinary relationship” going forward, just hours after he blamed US policy — not Putin — for the dismal state of relations between the two countries. “I think we have great opportunities together as two countries that, frankly, we have not been getting along very well for the last number of years,” Trump said. “I think we will end up having an extraordinary relationship.” Trump arrived Monday afternoon at the Finnish presidential palace for what he has called a summit with Putin, hoping once again that his personal touch can reverse the steep decline in US-Russia relations in recent years. US officials have stressed the path to improving US-Russia ties runs through a clear-eyed understanding of Russian aggression and the root causes of discord in the relationship, but Trump is signaling a different course. He is holding previous US administrations and the Justice Department’s investigation stemming from Russian meddling in the 2016 election responsible. “Our relationship with Russia has NEVER been worse thanks to many years of U.S. foolishness and stupidity and now, the Rigged Witch Hunt!” Trump tweeted Monday morning ahead of the summit. Trump and Putin arrived separately at the Finnish presidential palace, about 45 minutes behind schedule. Trump held at his hotel while he waited for Putin, who is known for arriving late to important events, to touch down — drawing comparisons to Trump’s late arrivals at recent summits with US allies. They then walked into a room at the presidential palace together before offering brief remarks before a gaggle of cameras and reporters, with Trump congratulating Putin once again “on a really great World Cup.” The two men shook hands after speaking, before reporters were ushered out. For the next hour-and-a-half, Trump and Putin are scheduled to hold one-on-one discussions, with only interpreters at their side. Trump was eager to have time alone with Putin to better personally assess him and develop a personal relationship, according to a US official, but he has also expressed anger at leaks from his meetings with foreign leaders and told aides he wanted to ensure his sensitive discussions with Putin remained secret. The official also said that Trump doesn’t want aides — who may take a harder line on Russia — undercutting or interrupting him during his talks with Putin. Just days earlier, Trump pointed to the “pure stupidity” and a “political problem” in the United States for making it “very hard to do something with Russia.” “Anything you do, it’s always going to be, ‘Oh, Russia, he loves Russia,’ ” Trump said during a joint news conference with his British counterpart. Trump’s Monday morning tweet and his words and actions in the last week have only amplified concerns about his approach to Russia among US allies and lawmakers of both parties in Washington. During his swing through Brussels and the United Kingdom, Trump has repeatedly criticized US allies, called the European Union a “foe” and criticized the Obama administration rather than Russia in the wake of the Justice Department’s indictment of 12 Russian agents who allegedly worked to hack Democrats’ emails and computer networks during the 2016 election. Ahead of his meeting with Putin — who is alleged to be behind the assassination of journalists and political dissidents — the US President also lashed out again at the news media on Sunday by branding journalists “the enemy of the people.” Trump again — as he has repeatedly done — pointed the finger at his predecessor President Barack Obama and characterized the investigation stemming from Russian election interference as a “witch hunt.” “President Obama thought that Crooked Hillary was going to win the election, so when he was informed by the FBI about Russian Meddling, he said it couldn’t happen, was no big deal, & did NOTHING about it,” Trump tweeted. “When I won it became a big deal and the Rigged Witch Hunt headed by Strzok!” Everything from Russian meddling in the 2016 election to the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine are expected to be on the agenda for their summit here in Helsinki, but Trump has signaled he is most eager to jumpstart talks to “substantially reduce” the two countries’ nuclear weapons arsenals and generally improve US-Russia relations. Trump is not, however, expected to offer to halt military exercises in the Baltics as part of his discussions with Putin, with a US official telling CNN’s Jeff Zeleny “at least that’s the plan going in.” The question of the Baltics exercises has hung over the summit, particularly after Trump abruptly decided last month to agree to stop joint US-South Korean military exercises during his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump has said he intends to once again ask Putin about Russian efforts to sway the results of the 2016 election, but has signaled he will not press the issue. “I know you’ll ask, will we be talking about meddling. I will absolutely bring that up. I don’t think you’ll have any, ‘Gee, I did it. I did it. You got me.’ There won’t be a Perry Mason here, I don’t think, but you never know what happens, right? But I will absolutely, firmly ask the question,” Trump said. Trump has sought to cool expectations in the last days leading up to the summit, saying in an interview Saturday that he planned to arrive in Helsinki “with very low expectations.” “I think that getting along with Russia is a good thing, but it’s possible we won’t,” Trump said. The-CNN-Wire & © 2018 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.

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Trump And Putin Summit Underway In Helsinki

July 16, 2018 0 comment

International news

President Trump Sets Low Expectations For Summit With Vladimir Putin

written by MarlysFrahm

GLASGOW, Scotland (CBSNewYork/AP) — President Donald Trump says “nothing bad … maybe some good” will come out of Monday’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as he attempted to lower expectations for what the meeting may actually achieve. Trump’s national security adviser said they aren’t looking for “concrete deliverables.” Trump also says he “hadn’t thought” about asking Putin to extradite the dozen Russian military intelligence officers indicted this past week in Washington on charges related to the hacking of Democratic targets in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, but says “certainly I’ll be asking about it.” He blamed the Democratic National Committee for “allowing themselves to be hacked.” The U.S. has no extradition treaty with Moscow and can’t compel Russia to hand over citizens, and a provision in Russia’s constitution prohibits extraditing its citizens to foreign countries. Asked whether Trump would ask Putin to turn over the 12 military intelligence officials, U.S. national security adviser John Bolton called the idea “pretty silly” and said doing so would put the president in a “weak position.” He said Trump is going into the summit with a stronger hand because of the indictments. “I think the president can put this on the table and say, `This is a serious matter that we need to talk about,”‘ Bolton said. He said asking for the indicted Russians to be turned over would have the opposite effect. “For the president to demand something that isn’t going to happen puts the president in a weak position, and I think the president has made it very clear he intends to approach this discussion from a position of strength.” In the interview with CBS News, Trump said he’s entering the meeting in Finland with “low expectations. I’m not going with high expectations.” Trump taped the interview Saturday in Scotland. CBS News released excerpts Sunday, hours before Trump was set to fly to Helsinki for the summit. Trump said such sessions are beneficial. He cited his historic meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in June as “a good thing” and says “having meetings with Russia, China, North Korea, I believe in it.” “Nothing bad is going to come out of it (Helsinki), and maybe some good will come out,” he said. Trump and Putin have met twice before, during international summits last year in Germany and in Vietnam. But Jon Huntsman, the U.S. ambassador to Russia, says Monday’s meeting “is really the first time for both presidents to actually sit across the table and have a conversation and I hope it’s a detailed conversation about where we might be able to find some overlapping and shared interests.” The president opened his first meeting with Putin — it lasted more than two hours last July in Hamburg, Germany — by pressing Putin on Russian election meddling and Putin denied being involved, according to U.S. officials who described the meeting afterward. Congressional Democrats and at least one Republican have called on the president to pull out of Monday’s meeting unless he is willing to make Russian election-meddling the top issue. Huntsman said the meeting must go on because some international issues can’t be solved without Russian engagement. “Right now, there’s no trust in the relationship and, because of that, problem-solving is practically impossible,” Huntsman said. “So this is an attempt to see if we can defuse and take some of the drama and quite frankly some of the danger out of the relationship right now.” Huntsman added: “The collective blood pressure between the United States and Russia is off-the-charts high so it’s a good thing these presidents are getting together.” Trump has said he will raise the issue of Russian election meddling, along with Syria, Ukraine, nuclear proliferation and other topics. Bolton described the meeting as “unstructured,” saying: “We’re not looking for concrete deliverables here.” Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., meanwhile, suggested that Trump not even bother to press Putin on election meddling because “he’s not going to admit that he did it.” Instead, Paul said Trump and other U.S. officials should focus on safeguarding upcoming elections from interference. Huntsman was interviewed on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Paul appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union” and Bolton spoke with ABC’s “This Week.” (© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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President Trump Sets Low Expectations For Summit With Vladimir Putin

July 15, 2018 0 comment