Yesterday afternoon, Donald Trump sat down with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos for an exclusive interview, and wound up saying something that left supporters puzzled and opponents outraged: He told the legendary anchor that there was nothing wrong with accepting the illegally-hacked information given to his campaign by the Russian government in 2016, and that he would consider doing it again in 2020 — and that he would not necessarily call the FBI.
EXCLUSIVE: Pres. Trump tells @GStephanopoulos he wouldn’t necessarily alert the FBI if approached by foreign figures with information on his 2020 opponent: “It’s not an interference. They have information. I think I’d take it.” https://t.co/yWRxMOsgiu pic.twitter.com/8Y4enHiqrd
— ABC News (@ABC) June 13, 2019
In that video, Trump insists over and over that it’s the same as “opposition research” and that he would only call law enforcement if he “thought something was wrong.” But Trump and his entire campaign apparatus knew that the information came from the Russian effort to hack and disseminate data from the Democratic National Committee and from Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.
Rightfully, the video sparked reactions ranging from agreement (by Trump fans, of course) to accusations of treason. But today, Trump seems to have only heard the reactions he wants to hear, because he is, as we speak, angrily tweeting about just this:
I meet and talk to “foreign governments” every day. I just met with the Queen of England (U.K.), the Prince of Wales, the P.M. of the United Kingdom, the P.M. of Ireland, the President of France and the President of Poland. We talked about “Everything!” Should I immediately….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2019
….call the FBI about these calls and meetings? How ridiculous! I would never be trusted again. With that being said, my full answer is rarely played by the Fake News Media. They purposely leave out the part that matters.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2019
When Senator @MarkWarnerVA spoke at length, and in great detail, about extremely negative information on me, with a talented entertainer purporting to be a Russian Operative, did he immediately call the FBI? NO, in fact he didn’t even tell the Senate Intelligence Committee of….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2019
….which he is a member. When @RepAdamSchiff took calls from another person, also very successfully purporting to be a Russian Operative, did he call the FBI, or even think to call the FBI? NO! The fact is that the phony Witch Hunt is a giant scam where Democrats,…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2019
….and other really bad people, SPIED ON MY CAMPAIGN! They even had an “insurance policy” just in case Crooked Hillary Clinton and the Democrats lost their race for the Presidency! This is the biggest & worst political scandal in the history of the United States of America. Sad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2019
Senator Warner, of course, did not speak with any Russians. He sent texts back and forth with a Washington lawyer who represents the oligarch Oleg Deripaska, whose company is currently enjoying the benefits of Mitch McConnell’s direct lobbying efforts — texts that were part of an investigation in the Russia probe.
Rep. Schiff was pranked by Russian entertainers who pretended to have nude photos of the President.
Both of those examples are a far cry from sensitive, illegally-obtained information offered to the Trump campaign shortly after Trump himself publicly called on Russia to hack Clinton’s servers in search of more information.
But Trump repeating the lie that his campaign was “spied on” is what gives this away as just another Trumper tantrum. That’s been debunked since the first time he said it, and he drags the claim out again every time he’s feeling particularly cornered.
We can only assume that Trump is terrified right now that his candor in yesterday’s interview with ABC will cost him his reelection.
Featured image via screen capture
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