Obama’s predecessor, George W. Bush, was also careful in his rhetoric with regard to Putin and Russian Federation, sparing them from his so-called “axis of evil” designation and famously saying he looked into Putin’s eyes and got “a sense of his soul”.
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“Of course I’m being sarcastic”, Trump said Thursday on Fox News’ “Fox and Friends”, a day after his remarks at a news conference ignited fierce debate over hacking and his urging of a global adversary to meddle in American politics.
This is why professional politicians avoid sarcasm, to avoid uttering words that create an uproar.
Charging Trump for his comments about Russian Federation would “turn campaign fluff into a crime” and would be laughable, said Daniel Richman, a Columbia University law professor and former US prosecutor. As a result, the room for error is far narrower than before.
That they are preparing to assume that role is underscored by the classified intelligence briefings they receive as official major-party nominees.
“He was joking around”, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a Trump surrogate, said on CNN’s “New Day”. But Trump delights in it, which is why his supporters love him, his detractors view him as reckless and the media can never seem to get enough. “Yeah, we’ll be looking”, Trump told reporters. Senior policy adviser Stephen Miller blasting “Hillary Clinton’s enablement of foreign espionage with her illegal email scheme”.
His remarks on Wednesday were regarding 30,000 emails Mrs Clinton did not hand over as part of an inquiry into a private email server.
Trump’s comments come on the heels of the Democratic National Committee’s emails being hacked – which research has concluded was likely done by two Russian intelligence agencies.
Yet, as experts increasingly link Russia to hacks of USA government systems, the Obama administration has been using stronger language to describe Russian behavior.
I think we need to start at the top of the outrage column.
US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump reportedly said on July 27 he would look into lifting sanctions against Moscow.
While Trump has sided with Putin on a wide range of issues, Putin has not openly backed the Republican nominee.
Oh, and let’s not forget that right before he said this, Trump said Russian Federation probably wasn’t behind the hack in the first place. Trump has defied conventions ever since he announced his candidacy and does not think that has cost him.
“You have to be kidding”, he said. If only it were amusing.
In Scranton, Trump mocked Democrats for suggesting he would support foreign states hacking the DNC, telling his supporters: “I wish I had that power”.
Retired Navy Adm. John Hutson also piled on. “Mr. Assange made it very clear when he dumped the first 20,000 that he was explicitly trying to help elect Donald Trump and damage Hillary Clinton”.
The Trump campaign has rejected the speculation as “a deflection”.
Obama’s speech played well with the #NeverTrump Republican crowd.
Sean Spicer, chief strategist for the RNC, noted eruptions of boos inside the Democratic convention hall and omnipresence of Sanders fans, and said, “Clinton should really focus on getting her own party in order before she worries about our party”.
Until now, it’s a line the White House has not crossed with respect to Putin.
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He reminded that one of US President Barack Obama’s campaign commitments was to close Guantanamo prison and yet it is still open.
