Posted on 12/21/2019 12:44:33 PM PST by jazusamo
House Foreign Affairs Committee member Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA) on Friday told CNN’s Brianna Keilar that she believes Russian President Vladimir Putin may have dirt on President Donald Trump.
“I wonder how concerned you are that Putin was able to influence not just through sort of Russian meddling and trying to persuade voters or Americans, but actually to influence the president in a way that has him picking what Putin’s saying over his own intel community?” Kellar asked.
“I think after the 2016 elections, the gloves were really off when it came to Vladimir Putin’s influence with President Trump and the GOP because let’s not forget, the GOP continues to parrot, not only on the floor, but also going onto Fox News, all of the things, the lies that Putin continues to spread, blaming and deflecting everyone else on his interference in our U.S. Elections.”
"Why do you think that Trump was such an easy target for Putin here?" Kellar asked.
“I am afraid that Vladimir Putin may have something on the president and it is the reason why the president has continued to play the handmaid to Vladimir Putin, inviting him to the White House and opening the doors and not having any advisers present, taking the notes from the interpreter and continuing to talk to him and continuing to parrot everything that he tells him,” Torres explained. “Russia is no friend of the U.S. They have never been a friend to us. They continue to compromise us internationally. They continue to attack our friends and our allies overseas. So, we have to be very careful, and we have to keep a close eye on how this continues to evolve.”
Kellar pressed Torres on the issue.
"So you said you think that Putin may have something, meaning compromising information – Kompromat as it's said in Russia – on President Trump," Kellar said. "Do you have proof of that? Is there something specific you're thinking of when you say that?"
Torres failed to cite a specific example but said "there's no other reason President Trump continues to capitulate to what Putin is telling him. He doesn't do that with anyone else." She said the president fails to listen to his advisers and the intelligence community about the threat Russia poses to the United States' national security.
Kellar asked the Congresswoman if this is less about Putin having dirt on Trump and more about meddling "delegitimizing" Trump's election in 2016.
“No, I think it was – we are beyond 2016’s election. I was present on January 20th to see President Trump take the oath of office. And I was there because I believe in the rule of law, because I believe in a peaceful transfer of power. So we are beyond 2016," she explained. "The fact that this President of the United States continues to depend on Russia to win the next election that he has coming, asking not only Russia, but asking Ukraine and China openly on TV to investigate his political opponents who could be challenging him, and who absolutely have an opportunity to win in this next election, I think is unconscionable. We have to work toward securing our elections, and not only has President Trump blocked us from securing our elections, Republicans in Congress have also done that.”
Was Torres not made aware of the fact that Special Counsel Robert Mueller found that the Trump campaign did not collude with Russia during the 2016 election? Yes, Russia meddled in our elections, but so did Ukraine.
Did Torres somehow forget that the Trump administration has actually taken a strong stance against Russia by providing lethal military aid to Ukraine solely to fight Russia? Kind of hard to let that slip your mind considering the entire partisan impeachment saga is about this very aid.
If our “government” would investigate the wrongdoing of politicians and government employees who appear to be engaging in corruption and bribery schemes, often using family members or associated NGOs to launder the proceeds, foreign governments would have no blackmail leverage.
Let’s start with Norma Torres and Maxine Waters.
I saw someone, don’t remember who, call this last week. They said now that impeachment has failed, they will go back to Russia! Russia!.
Torres must return to taking her medications.
Russia does not give a flip about President Trump. Why should they? They have worker bees in the Democrat Socialist Party.
This reprehensible Rep, and CNN are enemy combatants, fighting a
Psychological war against us.
(And they think we still don’t know it...)
Did they play her the Video of Obama telling the Ruskies that he would be more flexible after the Election and ask her to respond to it?
How about playing the Video of Biden threatening the Ukraine by withholding Aid if they didn’t do what he wanted?
Looks like whoever it was is right.
I don’t think the RATs know which direction to go now, they’re running out of choices.
There should be a requirement that people running for congress have a minimum IQ and be required to take an IQ test to be eligible to run. This moron Torres would still be in a minimum wage job if she had to take a test. Maxine Waters would not even have a job. Who would hire this human vegetable?
I think the $150 million he paid Hillary gave him access to our uranium reserves.
Because she deranged.
The Dems think everyone is Crook just like them
Monkeys already flew out her mouth, so that’s likely next.
Let’s see. Who refused to give Ukraine Javelins? Who decided to give them to Ukraine.
Putin blackmailed Trump to give Ukraine Javelins????????
Somebody should bring that up to this idiot.
The comment is not so much a reflection of herself as much as its a reflection of her constituents & her parties ideological narrative.
Deport Norma back to Mexico. PRAY for Maxine (in the same manner as Pelosi prays for Trump)
This norma cretin should be arrested for sedition and treason, taken to GITMO and waterboarded with extreme prejudice. What a mis-shapened-headed leftist loser. Typical...
Somebody tell this stupid ahole that Pancho Villa is still dead! Too many tacos and not enough American schooling.
That’s called idiocracy.
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