Trump pulled the media aside while in Israel on Monday and made the Russia scandal worse by denying that he told Russia that Israel was the source of the classified intelligence that he leaked to a hostile foreign power.
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President Trump says he “never mentioned the word Israel†in his Oval Office meeting with Russian officials https://t.co/84ZCW64hcE
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) May 22, 2017
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Trump said, “Just so you understand, I never mentioned the word or the name Israel during our conversation. They were all sitting at a table, so you had another story wrong, never mentioned Israel.”
So Donald Trump’s defense is that he definitely leaked classified intelligence to the Russians, but never mentioned the word Israel, so that makes it all good. The Washington Post reporting doesn’t indicate that Trump said the word Israel or mentioned Israel. In fact, the Post report makes it clear that Trump leaked enough detail to the Russians that they could easily figure out the source on their own.
Trump may not have said the name Israel, but he could have said, “Our Jewish pals have the intel,” or my “buddy Bibi was just saying.” Trump’s defense is a lot like telling a child a man in a red suit is going to come down the chimney on Christmas Eve but never saying the name Santa Claus.
Every time Trump opens his mouth about the Russia scandal, he only makes things worse for himself.
If Trump had anyone close to him who could stand up to him, they would tell the President to stop talking right now.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
