Vladimir Putin

Wednesday July 18, 2018


Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday 18, 2018

After Putin summit outrage, Trump says he accepts that Russia meddled

July 16, 2018

After outrage over his failure to hold Russia accountable for interfering in the 2016 U.S. election during a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he accepts the U.S. intelligence community’s conclusion that Russia did in fact meddle in the election.

At a joint news conference with Putin after a summit in Helsinki on Monday, Trump stunned politicians back home by shying away from criticizing Putin for Moscow’s efforts to undermine the election, contradicting the findings of American intelligence agencies.

After outrage over his failure to hold Russia accountable for interfering in the 2016 U.S. election during a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he accepts the U.S. intelligence community’s conclusion that Russia did in fact meddle in the election.

April 8, 2017

At a joint news conference with Putin after a summit in Helsinki on Monday, Trump stunned politicians back home by shying away from criticizing Putin for Moscow’s efforts to undermine the election, contradicting the findings of American intelligence agencies.

On Monday, when asked about the meddling, Trump said that while his intelligence officials had said “they think it’s Russia” that Putin “just said it’s not Russia.”

“I will say this: I don’t see any reason why it would be,” Trump said.

But back at the White House on Tuesday, he told reporters that he meant to say wouldn’t instead of would. He told reporters, “The sentence should have been I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t be Russia.”

June 7, 2000

As the president said he has “full faith” in the intelligence agencies, the lights in the conference room briefly went out. As they came back on, he said that while he feels strongly that Russia’s actions had no impact on the outcome of the election, he accepts the intelligence community’s conclusion that meddling took place.

But even as he tried to clarify his previous statement and assert support for U.S. intelligence agencies, he left room for other actors to be implicated. (Source: CBC News) 

 

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Monday July 16, 2018

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Monday July 16, 2018

McCain: Trump’s meeting with Putin ‘should not move forward’

December 17, 2016

Sen. John McCain praised the Department of Justice’s announcement of the indictment of 12 Russian intelligence officers for interfering in the 2016 presidential election, adding President Donald Trump shouldn’t meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin unless he holds him accountable.

“President Trump must be willing to confront Putin from a position of strength and demonstrate that there will be a serious price to pay for his ongoing aggression towards the United States and democracies around the world,” the Arizona senator said in a statement Friday. “If President Trump is not prepared to hold Putin accountable, the summit in Helsinki should not move forward.”

November 3, 2017

The statement came hours after the Justice Department announced indictments against 12 Russian nationals as part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election, accusing them of engaging in a “sustained effort” to hack Democrats’ emails and computer networks.

Trump is due to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin — who has denied election meddling — in Helsinki on Monday for a summit that includes a one-on-one meeting with only interpreters present.

March 7, 2017

McCain wasn’t the only Republican senator to criticize Putin following the indictments. Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse said in a statement that “all patriotic Americans” should know Putin is not “the President’s buddy.”

“The US intelligence community knows that the Russian government attacked the US,” he said in a statement. “This is not a Republican or a Democrat view — it is simply the reality. All patriotic Americans should understand that Putin is not America’s friend, and he is not the President’s buddy. We should stand united against Putin’s past and planned future attacks against us.” (Source: CNN) 

Comic Strip of the Day, July 14, 2018

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Wednesday May 3, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday May 3, 2017

Donald Trump’s willingness to meet the world’s strongmen

US President Donald Trump said on Monday he’d be “honored” to meet with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, clarifying he meant “under the right circumstances.”
 
That came just 48 hours after he invited Philippines leader Rodrigo Duterte to the White House, surprising the State Department and breaking with long-held tradition. Duterte has since said he might be too busy for any visit to Washington soon. 
 
These are just the two latest signs of Trump’s openness to, or perhaps fascination with, the world’s strongmen.
 
The Trump administration has adopted a harder line with Pyongyang as tensions between the two countries have continued to escalate in recent weeks. Despite this, the President expressed admiration for how Kim Jong Un handled ascending to power at such a young age in an interview with Reuters on April 28.
 
On Monday, he said to Bloomberg News: “If it would be appropriate for me to meet with him, I would absolutely, I would be honored to do it. If it’s under the, again, under the right circumstances. But I would do that.”
 
Trump appeared to offer his seal of approval for Erdogan’s ambitions to replace Turkey’s current system of parliamentary democracy with an all-powerful executive presidency in a congratulatory phone conversation shortly after the Turkish referendum.
 
Long before he took office, Trump was fawning over the Russian leader.
 
“I’ve always had a good instinct about Putin,” Trump said in December 2015 interview with Iowa radio host Conway, years before the two would meet.
 
since assuming the presidency, Trump has tweeted Putin’s criticism of Hillary Clinton and chastised her for speaking badly of him. He even went as far as defending the Russian leader to Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly, who called Putin a killer in an interview.
 
“There are a lot of killers,” Trump said on February 6, 2017. “Do you think our country is so innocent? Do you think our country is so innocent?” (Source: CNN) 

Saturday April 8, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday April 8, 2017

Is Trump’s bromance with Putin history?

The bromance between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin may be over before it could really blossom.

April 6, 2017

Blame Syrian President Bashar Assad for coming between them.

The Kremlin, a close ally of the Syrian strongman, condemned the U.S. cruise missile attack on a Syrian airfield early Friday morning as an “act of aggression in violation of international law.”

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said it suspended an agreement with the Pentagon to share communication about U.S. and Russian aircraft conducting separate missions over Syria to avoid mishaps.

Russian aircraft support Assad in his fight against rebels, which include the Islamic State, while a U.S.-led coalition is focused exclusively on defeating Islamic State militants.

December 17, 2016

Russia’s decision in 2015  to enter Syria’s civil war with airstrikes against Assad’s opponents strengthened the dictator’s grip on the country when it looked perilous.

Trump ordered the strike in retaliation for Assad’s alleged use of chemical weapons in a rebel-held town Tuesday, but Russia defended Assad, saying the chemicals were released when Syrian planes struck a terrorist lab.

The U.S. strike widens the gulf between Trump and Putin over Assad’s future months after the Russian and American presidents seemed to be coming closer to an agreement to join forces to bring an end to Syria’s six-year-long civil war, defeat the Islamic State in Syria and let Assad stay in power.

After the chemical attack — which killed 86 people, including 27 children — Trump abruptly reversed course, calling for Assad’s ouster, as President Barack Obama had done. That is something Putin has been loath to do since the Syrian leader is one of his few allies in the Middle East. (Source: USA Today) 

 

Thursday April 6, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday April 6, 2017

Donald Trump’s response to Syria gas attack: blame Obama

The scale and horror of Tuesday’s gas attack on civilians in Idlib highlighted the vacuum in the Trump administration’s foreign policy making: the incident was met first by silence, then by criticism of Barack Obama.

 

April 10, 2012

Donald Trump described the attack, which killed scores of victims, including many children, as a direct “consequence” of his predecessor’s Syria policy.

 
“These heinous actions by the Bashar al-Assad regime are a consequence of the last administration’s weakness and irresolution,” he said in a statement. “President Obama said in 2012 that he would establish a ‘red line’ against the use of chemical weapons and then did nothing.” 
 
The reflex illustrated Trump’s enduring sense of being in his predecessor’s shadow, reinforcing the impression given by his obsessive tweeting of unsubstantiated claims that Obama wiretapped him.
 

September 13, 2014

As with healthcare, Trump’s policy on Syria has been defined by the desire to unpick Obama’s legacy – without a clear picture of what would replace it.

 
In the absence of a clear vision, the initial response to on Tuesday was silence. 
 
The Idlib attack was swiftly condemned by western capitals and congressional leaders, but the US secretary of state, Rex Tillerson – who was visiting neighbouring Jordan at the time – ignored a press question about it, retaining his customary silence in the face of daily world events.
 
He recently described himself as “not a media press access person”.
 
On Tuesday morning, Trump addressed a builders’ conference, but made no mention of the attack.
 
It was only later in the day that the White House spokesman read out a statement from the president, in which Trump used the occasion to score a domestic political point against the Obama administration. (Source: The Guardian)