As Chris Cuomo, co-host of CNN's New Day, complained about President Trump's response to Russia's involvement in the poisoning of a former Russian spy residing in the UK, his guest, left-leaning Independent Senator Angus King (Maine) told him "I think you're being a little hard." King, who caucuses with the Democrats and supported Hillary Clinton in 2016, is not normally known for defending President Trump.
Cuomo opened the segment by saying that President Trump was “leaving it to his aides to condemn Russia.” He then asked the Senator: “Am I wrong to be suspicious of why once again, the President, who seems always to be spoiling for a fight, brags about lying to the Canadian Prime Minister, will not mention Vladimir Putin or Russia even after an alleged murder on the soil of one of our greatest allies?”
King responded: “I think you take what you can get in this situation”. He also praised U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley’s strong statement about the matter while expressing disappointment that she “never mentioned what happened here in our election and what’s going on right at this very moment” when describing all of the sinister behavior Russia has engaged in worldwide.
Cuomo seemed to imply that Haley neglecting to bring up the Russian interference in 2016 “wasn’t a mistake either,” suggesting that the Trump administration’s response to the poisoning served as yet another of example of how Putin has bought Trump’s silence. King argued that Haley’s failure to bring up Russian meddling as “a very loud omission” and stressed the need to get to the bottom of the extent of Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Cuomo then played a clip of President Trump weighing in on the poisoning before departing the White House for California to inspect prototypes for the border wall and address a military base. President Trump told reporters: “It sounds to me like it would be Russia based on all of the evidence they have. I don’t know if they have come to a conclusion. It sounds to me like they believe it was Russia and I would certainly take that finding as fact. As soon as we get the facts straight, if we agree with them, we will condemn Russia or whoever it may be.”
Cuomo then ripped into the President’s response, which he had previously described as a “light touch.” According to Cuomo: “He just hasn’t done it, Senator and there’s a point of fact here. That would be a fine prescription for how to proceed if we didn’t know anything. But the President at the time that he said that had to know that Theresa May had already addressed Parliament and said we know that it was Russia. So it wasn’t that he was waiting for facts, he just didn’t want to act on the facts.”
King rejected Cuomo’s premise, telling him “I think maybe you’re being a little hard because he said we don’t know all the facts.” King then praised a statement from the White House written on the White House Stationery speaking for the President, calling it “pretty strong.”
For Cuomo, the White House statement just didn’t cut it. He asked King “so you don’t think it has to come from the President directly?” King acknowledged that he thought that would be “preferable” but “I think maybe we’re cutting the lines fairly fine here.”
The media have relentlessly pushed the narrative that President Trump has been too soft on Russia and thus Vladimir Putin has “dirt” on him. Yet, after this interview aired, the President imposed sanctions on two dozen Russian individuals and entities in retaliation for cyber attacks and their meddling in the 2016 election. So maybe Russia doesn’t own President Trump after all.
A transcript is below. Click "expand" to read more:
CNN's New Day
03/15/18
07:20 AM
CHRIS CUOMO: All right. So, the White House backing British Prime Minister Theresa May’s decision to expel 23 Russian diplomats after the nerve agent attack on a former Russian spy and his daughter in the UK. President Trump, however, leaving it to his aides to condemn Russia. Joining us now is Maine’s Independent Senator Angus King, he serves on the Armed Services and Intel Committees. Senator, always a pleasure. Good to see you.
INDEPENDENT SENATOR ANGUS KING (Maine): Yes sir. Good morning.
CUOMO: So am I wrong to be suspicious of why once again, the President, who seems always to be spoiling for a fight, brags about lying to the Canadian Prime Minister, will not mention Vladimir Putin or Russia even after an alleged murder on the soil of one of our greatest allies?
KING: Well, I think you take what you can get in this situation. Nikki Haley made a strong statement at the U.N. The White House, as an institution, released a very strong statement yesterday backing up the British. The President, I guess, hasn’t been asked about it or hasn’t made a statement about it but I wish he would. I listened to Nikki Haley’s speech yesterday. My only problem, she listed all the things that Russia was doing wrong in the world, talking bout chemical weapons and what happened in Britain. Never mentioned what happened here in our election and what’s going on right at this very moment.
CUOMO: That wasn’t a mistake either, right Senator?
KING: Well, it was, let’s say it was a very loud omission. And I think that’s unfortunate because we’re never going to get to the bottom of this. We’re never going to be able to prevent the Russians from doing again what they did in 2016 until we acknowledge that they did it.
CUOMO: Right. I mean, look, the President has been asked about this and he has spoken on it but he has a light touch on it and that’s the point because that’s not what he’s known for. Here’s a little bit of sound of one of his recent responses.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: It sounds to me like it would be Russia based on all of the evidence they have. I don’t know if they have come to a conclusion. It sounds to me like they believe it was Russia and I would certainly take that finding as fact. As soon as we get the facts straight, if we agree with them, we will condemn Russia or whoever it may be.
CUOMO: Now, that has happened. He just hasn’t done it, Senator and there’s a point of fact here. That would be a fine prescription for how to proceed if we didn’t know anything. But the President at the time that he said that had to know that Theresa May had already addressed Parliament and said we know that it was Russia. So it wasn’t that he was waiting for facts, he just didn’t want to act on the facts.
KING: Well I think maybe you’re being a little hard because he said we don’t know all the facts. They got the facts, the White House just issued a statement. It’s true he didn’t issue the statement but the, the statement that I saw yesterday from, and it was on the White House stationery speaking for the President was pretty strong.
CUOMO: So you don’t think it has to come from the President directly?
KING: Well, I think it’s, that’s preferable but, you know, I think maybe we’re cutting the lines fairly fine here.
