Thread: Trump Putin: Incredulity as Russian leader is invited to visit US

Trump Putin: Incredulity as Russian leader is invited to visit US

36 minutes ago

President Donald Trump has invited Russian leader Vladimir Putin to visit America, in a move that drew startled laughter from a US intelligence chief.

"That's gonna be special!" said Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, when he was told about the invitation during a live interview.

A row is continuing over Mr Trump's first summit with Mr Putin, in Helsinki, where they talked privately.

Opposition Democrats say there should be no more one-to-one talks.

"Until we know what happened at that two-hour meeting in Helsinki, the president should have no more one-on-one interactions with Putin," said the top Democratic senator, Chuck Schumer, in a statement. "In the United States, in Russia, or anywhere else."

Mr Trump's presidency has been clouded by allegations that Russian hackers meddled in the 2016 US presidential election in his favour. The Kremlin denies the allegations.

In Helsinki, Mr Putin offered access to 12 Russians indicted in absentia by the US authorities over the alleged interference, on condition the Russian authorities could question 12 Americans over a different case. Mr Trump first praised the suggestion as "incredible" but later rejected it.

Since his return from Finland, he or the White House have had to correct or clarify other comments regarding Russia, creating confusion and prompting the Democrats to demand details of his private talks with Mr Putin.
Trump prepares a sequel

Donald Trump has tweeted that the summit with Mr Putin was a "great success" and people at "higher ends of intelligence" loved his Helsinki news conference. As if to underline that point, plans are already under way for a sequel - this time in Washington DC.

Never mind that the White House has spent three days trying to clean up the political fallout from the summit amid bipartisan criticism, or that the special counsel investigation into Russian meddling in 2016 continues apace.

Mr Trump may have been encouraged by recent opinion polling showing that while the public at large is uneasy with Mr Trump's Russia policies, his Republican base - by a sizeable majority - is fine with his performance.

The president campaigned on closer ties with Russia, a goal that had been thwarted during his first year in office. With his base still behind him, Mr Trump appears ready to press on with his efforts.

Mr Putin, in power in Russia since 2000, last visited the US in 2015, when he met President Barack Obama, Mr Trump's predecessor, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York to discuss the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria.

On Thursday, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that discussions about a visit by Mr Putin to Washington DC this autumn were already under way.

Russia's ambassador to Washington, Anatoly Antonov, said his country had always been open to the idea of a visit but it was "up to the Kremlin to decide how many summits are needed, and when".

The announcement appeared to come as a surprise to US intelligence chief Mr Coats, who was told about it during a live interview at the Aspen Security Forum in the state of Colorado.

He added that he did not yet know what Mr Trump and Mr Putin had discussed during their meeting, at which only the pair and their interpreters were present.

At the post-summit news conference in Helsinki, Mr Putin was asked whether he would extradite 12 Russian intelligence agents indicted in the US for hacking Democratic Party computers.

No extradition treaty exists between the two countries but Mr Putin said he would meet the US government "halfway".

He said that US investigators could question the 12 suspects inside Russia if, in turn, Russian investigators were allowed to question US citizens with regard to a case against financier Bill Browder.

Mr Browder was instrumental in the US imposing sanctions in 2012 on top Russian officials accused of corruption in the Magnitsky affair.

One of the Americans on Russia's list is a former US ambassador to Moscow, Michael McFaul.

The idea of allowing Russia to quiz US citizens sparked outrage and the US Senate voted 98-0 against it. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said it was "not going to happen".

At the news conference in Helsinki, Mr Trump said: "He [Mr Putin] offered to have the people working on the case come and work with their investigations with respect to the 12 people. I think that's an incredible offer."

Now, however, he says he "disagrees" with Mr Putin's proposal.

"I'm thankful that Donald Trump has no intention of handing me over to Vladimir Putin to have me killed in a Russian prison," Mr Browder told the BBC.

President Trump has also clarified remarks at the news conference in which he said he saw no reason for Russia to have meddled in the 2016 US election - despite US intelligence concluding just that.

Speaking to CBS News on Wednesday, Mr Trump said he held Mr Putin personally responsible for interfering in the election, and that he was "very strong on the fact that we can't have meddling".

Mr Putin has also described the summit as "successful" but warned "there are forces in the United States that are prepared to casually sacrifice Russian-US relations".

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-44895384

LOL!! Browder is so full of it. Trump has no jurisdiction over you, pee brain. You're British, not American. No one in the United States can "hand you over" to anyone. But I'll tell you what if the offer is ever made to Great Britain, you might be surprised with their reaction. They probably have a pretty high degree of interest in Ex-Pat Americans like you who gave up US citizenship to evade US income taxes who then made billions in Russia where you were convicted of tax evasion.

McFaul was Ambassador to Russia and didn't know about the Treaty with the US when he and 3 CIA officers aided Browder in fleeing Russia to avoid prosecution for income tax evasion? I mean I certainly understand why Russia would like to "quiz you up".

Originally Posted by Judy

LOL!! Browder is so full of it. Trump has no jurisdiction over you, pee brain. You're British, not American. No one in the United States can "hand you over" to anyone.

You're obsessing over Browder! He is free to travel the world. However any country he happens to be in could honor the Russians' claim. So it is an important proclamation by President Trump!

Also:

He said that US investigators could question the 12 suspects inside Russia if, in turn, Russian investigators were allowed to question US citizens with regard to a case against financier Bill Browder.

This would not be Browder! It would be other "Americans" testifying about Browder. So the President's refusal IS ABOUT PROTECTING AMERICANS!

Originally Posted by jtdc

You're obsessing over Browder! He is free to travel the world. However any country he happens to be in could honor the Russians' claim. So it is an important proclamation by President Trump!

Also:This would not be Browder! It would be other "Americans" testifying about Browder. So the President's refusal IS ABOUT PROTECTING AMERICANS!

No, I'm not obsessing over Bill Browder, the US Congress obsessed over him. Why?

Why would the US government want to protect these American witnesses against providing information about a British citizen who ripped off Russia through tax evasion? We have among many, Paul Manafort locked up in solitary confinement for tax evasion, why would we protect a British citizen convicted of tax evasion in Russia, when we have our own American citizens locked up in solitary confinement for charges of tax evasion before they've even been to trial?!! It makes no sense at all.

It's just like sanctuary cities and state sanctuary laws. Why would you protect people who aren't even supposed to be in our country? On the take with the drugs who brought them here to run drugs and other criminal enterprises for the cartels.

Bill Browder is a billionaire with lots of money to hand out wherever and however he wants from Britain.

Originally Posted by Judy

No, I'm not obsessing over Bill Browder, the US Congress obsessed over him.

Okay, you are obsessing over Congress obsessing over Browder!

Originally Posted by Judy

Why would the US government want to protect these American witnesses against providing information about a British citizen who ripped off Russia through tax evasion?

Because they are "American Intelligence Agents!"

Originally Posted by Judy

We have among many, Paul Manafort locked up in solitary confinement for tax evasion, why would we protect a British citizen convicted of tax evasion in Russia, when we have our own American citizens locked up in solitary confinement for charges of tax evasion before they've even been to trial?!! It makes no sense at all.

Oh come on! That British citizen doesn't potentially have anything that Mueller can use against President Trump!

Originally Posted by Judy

It's just like sanctuary cities and state sanctuary laws. Why would you protect people who aren't even supposed to be in our country? On the take with the drugs who brought them here to run drugs and other criminal enterprises for the cartels.

That was started by Obama who wanted illegal aliens taking over our country. And even though he is gone, the movement he started continues!

Originally Posted by Judy

Bill Browder is a billionaire with lots of money to hand out wherever and however he wants from Britain.

Why spend his money if he can get it for free?

Yes, I am obsessing over Congress obsessing over a British citizen convicted of tax evasion in Russia. What does anything to do with tax evasion in Russia by a British citizen have to do with the United States so why did the Congress jump to the bait and pass this act? It doesn't make any sense at all that we did that.