Free Republic

Beginning his joint press conference with Vladimir Putin, President Trump declared that U.S. relations with Russia have “never been worse.” He then added pointedly, that just changed “about four hours ago.” It certainly did. With his remarks in Helsinki and at the NATO summit in Brussels, Trump has signaled a historic shift in U.S. foreign policy that may determine the future of this nation and the fate of his presidency. He has rejected the fundamental premises of American foreign policy since the end of the Cold War and blamed our wretched relations with Russia not on Vladimir Putin, but squarely...

HELSINKI, July 16 (Reuters) - Standing side by side with Vladimir Putin, U.S. President Donald Trump refused on Monday to blame the Russian leader for meddling in the 2016 U.S. election, casting doubt on the findings of his own intelligence agencies and sparking a storm of criticism at home. Although he faced pressure from critics, allied countries and even his own staff to take a tough line, Trump spoke not a single disparaging word in public about Moscow on any of the issues that have brought relations between the two powers to the lowest ebb since the Cold War. Instead,...

President Trump on Monday evening blamed special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election interference for driving a “wedge” between Washington and Moscow. “It’s driven a wedge between us and Russia,” Trump told Fox News’s Sean Hannity in his first one-on-one interview since meeting face-to-face with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland, earlier in the day. “Maybe we’ve just knocked down that wedge.” Trump sparked broad criticism — including from Republicans — earlier Monday by casting doubt on Russian interference in the 2016 election at a press conference alongside Putin following their meeting. The Russian president has repeatedly denied...

Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed talk of Russian influence on the 2016 U.S. election as “utterly ridiculous,” but said that only facts were leaked following the hacking of Democratic groups. Fox News host Chris Wallace was asking Putin about special counsel Robert Mueller’s indictment Friday of 12 Russian military intelligence officers accused of hacking a number of Democratic officials as part of the Russian effort to tip the 2016 election in President Trump’s favor. “Do you really believe that someone acting from the Russian territory could have influenced the United States and influenced the choice of millions of Americans?” Putin...

Mr Juncker was accompanied by the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, who warned that worsening trade tensions could lead to conflict. Instead of working with us to address a common problem, some of our trading partners have elected to respond with retaliatory tariffs created to punish American workers, farmers and companies. "It is the common duty of Europe and China, but also America and Russian Federation, not to destroy (the global trade order) but to improve it, not to start trade wars which turned into hot conflicts so often in our history", EU Council President Donald Tusk said...

@realDonaldTrump Will be interviewed on @seanhannity tonight at 9pmE and @TuckerCarlson tomorrow night at 8pmE. Enjoy! 3:53 PM - 16 Jul 2018

1. Obama Replays Sick Middle School Burn In response, Obama mocked Romney’s statement: “The 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back because…the Cold War’s been over for 20 years.” 2. Clinton: It’s So Last Season To Be Concerned About Russia Hillary Clinton got in on the action, saying it was “somewhat dated” to be worried about Russia. The self-titled “pantsuit aficionado” should probably stop judging other people for doing things that are “dated,” am I right? 3.Joe Biden: It May Be A Gaffe; I Would Know Vice President Joe Biden suggested Romney’s assertion might’ve been either...

There will be no more internal spying on opposition politicians, incoming president Andrés Manuel López Obrador said on Saturday, recalling that he was tailed for years by federally-employed spies. There will be no more Center for Investigation and National Security (Cisen) either, following its dissolution as part of the new government’s austerity measures. The newly-appointed public security secretary, Alfonso Durazo Montaño, announced the move on Saturday. “Cisen disappears because it has been discredited due to the political use that was made of it,” Durazo said. The incoming secretary said a new organization, the National Intelligence Agency, will replace it. López...

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., blasted President Trump for his comments during a joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin Monday afternoon, and called it "one of the most disgraceful performances by an American president" in his lifetime. . . . “Coming close on the heels of President Trump’s bombastic and erratic conduct towards our closest friends and allies in Brussels and Britain, today’s press conference marks a recent low point in the history of the American Presidency," McCain said.

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico’s president-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he would cancel the planned purchase of eight military helicopters from the United States as part of cost-cutting measures.Lopez Obrador, who handily won this month’s presidential election on pledges to fight corruption and cut government waste, said there had been plans to pay 26 billion pesos ($1.36 billion) for the helicopters to be used by Mexico’s navy. “This purchase is going to be canceled because we can not make this expenditure,” Lopez Obrador told reporters on Wednesday after meeting with incoming legislators from his MORENA party. Lopez Obrador is...

On Friday — three days before today’s summit meeting between President Trump and Russian President Putin — the boss of Team Mueller, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, announced that a dozen Russian intelligence officers had been indicted on charges relating to Russia’s attempt to interfere in the 2016 election. These Potemkin indictments could have been announced a month earlier or a month later. Instead they were obviously timed and intended to have an effect on the Trump-Putin meeting. Mueller has no business playing around with foreign policy. The Friday indictments were a truly despicable abuse of power. Last February, Mueller...

Former CIA Director John Brennan tweeted a strongly worded reaction to President Trump's news conference, saying it "was nothing short of treasonous."

Supporters of President Donald Trump rallied in Helsinki on Sunday to welcome the president to the Finnish capital at the same time protesters gathered nearby to protest against the two presidents.

Russian authorities have charged four members of the punk activist group Pussy Riot for disrupting the World Cup final by running onto the pitch. They are accused of violating the rules for spectators at sporting events and of wearing police uniforms illegally. The two offences carry maximum fines of 10,000 roubles (£121; $161) and 1,500 roubles, respectively.

Newt Gingrich on Monday offered rare, scalding criticism of President Trump, demanding that the president explain the comments he made during his controversial press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the conclusion of their talks in Helsinki. "President Trump must clarify his statements in Helsinki on our intelligence system and Putin," the former House speaker wrote on Twitter. "It is the most serious mistake of his presidency and must be corrected—-immediately." Trump received widespread scorn on Monday after he said at the media availability that he has yet to see any compelling reason why the Kremlin would have interfered...

The Prince of Wales, Prince William, and the younger royals all deliberately snubbed President Donald J. Trump on his visit to the UK, the Sunday Times reports. I blame the Meghan effect. Of course we can’t hold the arrival into the Royal household of a pretty actress who used to be in Suits wholly responsible for this outbreak of crass, thick, petulant behaviour: as we know, the Prince of Wales is more than capable of that without much prompting; and in Will’s case, the acorn doesn’t look as if it has fallen too far from the tree. Still, I’m blaming...

Twenty-eight-year-old socialist sensation Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez isn't all that, you know, ummm, up on the news. Good thing she never met Bill Buckley, because on PBS's current version of his old show, Firing Line with Margaret Hoover, she came out looking like an idiot. Seriously, watch this: Video at link: New York socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez attacked Israel in a recent interview on PBS's "Firing Line," calling them the occupiers of Palestine and later admitting that she has no idea what she is talking about regarding Israel. Ocasio-Cortez's remarks came in response to a question from host Margaret Hoover, who asked her...

... Putin made his first mistake in 2013 when he did not permit Trump to build a hotel in Russia. He made his second mistake in 2016 when he did not respond to a letter from Trump's lawyer about the assistance in the building of the same Trump Tower in Moscow. There was a message sent to the public e-mail address of the Putin’s spokesman, and it received no answer. Of course, we've known for a long time that not responding to business letters is a part of modern Russian culture, but Trump is used to an entirely different treatment....

video and full transcript at link

Oh, my. The media and the leftists (including GOPe RINO NeverTrumpers) cannot understand why President Trump doesn't trust the deep state CIA/FBI/DOJ political operators, ie, the deep state swamp. Can't be that these same deep state swamp dwellers have been colluding and working overtime for the last several years using and abusing their government offices trying to prevent Trump from winning the nomination, prevent candidate Trump from being elected, prevent president-elect Trump from taking office, trying to overturn President Trump's election? President Trump was elected specifically to drain the swamp. No one said it was gonna be easy. Looks like...