At NBC's Commander-in-Chief forum, Donald Trump heaped praise on Vladimir Putin while demeaning U.S. generals. It was an ugly spectacle that was greeted with widespread criticism. Mike Pence now joins his running mate in favorably comparing Putin with President Obama.
This is astonishing by any standards.
Mike Pence defends Donald Trump's praise of Vladimir Putin: 'Inarguable' that Putin is a stronger leader than Obama https://t.co/dmjkTvpaMA
— Anderson Cooper 360° (@AC360) September 9, 2016
Trump's ghostwriter:
Trump reveres Putin. He wants Putin's power. He wants to be a dictator. Every American -- every American -- should be terrified about that.
— Tony Schwartz (@tonyschwartz) September 8, 2016
Hillary Clinton's response to Trump's embrace of Putin is appropriate:
"Now, that is not just unpatriotic and insulting to the people of our country, as well as to our commander in chief. It is scary because it suggests he will let Putin do whatever Putin wants to do, and then make excuses for him. I was just thinking about all of the presidents that would just be looking at one another in total astonishment. What would Ronald Reagan say about a Republican nominee who attacks America’s generals and heaps praise on Russia’s president? I think we know the answer."
Indeed, we do.
And there's this:
Trump just did an interview for Russia Today
— John Harwood (@JohnJHarwood) September 8, 2016
The Washington Post sums up the RT interview: "Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump criticized U.S. foreign policy and the American political press corps Thursday during an interview on RT America, a state-owned Russian television network."
