Trump’s affinity for Putin harms US interests

What is this thing President Trump has for Russian President Vladimir Putin — this respect for a brutal dictator and admiration for a war criminal? Why would an American president want to get so chummy with a man like Putin?   

On his way to a recent campaign rally, the president said, “Russia, frankly, has been fine on Ukraine,” before adding, “They haven’t been doing much.”

Words matter and in this case the president’s words are detached from reality. Russia has taken deliberate aim at civilians in Ukraine. Putin has targeted apartment buildings in Kyiv, the capital city. He’s aimed his missiles at hospitals and schools. And with winter approaching, he’s targeting what’s left of Ukraine’s electricity grid.

And yet the president tells us that “Russia has been fine on Ukraine,” and, “They haven’t been doing much.”

Maybe Trump thinks he can sweet-talk Putin to encourage him to make a deal to end the war. Or maybe that’s just wishful thinking. Maybe Trump’s affection for Putin is affecting his judgment?

For Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who’s fighting for his country’s very survival, Trump shows no respect, certainly no admiration. Instead, he shows contempt. 

“We’ve given a lot to Ukraine.” Trump says. “They’ve given nothing to us.”

So Trump has rolled out another red carpet for Putin — this time not literally as he did last summer in Alaska. This time the red carpet comes in the form of help from the president that would fuel Putin’s war machine and inflict more pain on Ukrainian civilians.

As David Sanger of the New York Times........

© The Hill