Trump’s Putin defense elicits backlash from Republicans

Bloomberg

President Donald Trump’s equivocation on US intelligence agencies during a news conference with Russian leader Vladimir Putin triggered the most intense backlash from Republicans of anything he’s done since winning election in 2016.
Republicans who looked past the release of his recorded his refusal to denounce neo-Nazi protesters, or complained but took no substantive action when he imposed tariffs on allies found their line in the sand after he sided with Putin against the US intelligence community’s consensus that Russia interfered in the 2016 election.
“It is the most serious mistake of his presidency and must be corrected — immediately,” former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said on Twitter. Gingrich, who’s been a staunch Trump backer and whose wife, Callista, was named by Trump as US ambassador to the Vatican, said Trump needs to clarify his statements.
By putting Putin’s denial of election meddling on par with the conclusions of American officials that he did, Trump cut to the core of the Republican Party’s longtime identity, exemplified by President Ronald Reagan, one of its greatest heroes.
“I’ve never been more disappointed in my life,” said Representative Walter Jones, a North Carolina Republican, who has supported the investigation into Russian election interference and any links to the Trump campaign. “I called my staff and told them the ghost of Reagan is probably as mad as hell.”
The Constitution gives the president wide purview over foreign policy, but Congress has some levers to pull. For example, Senators Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, and Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, have introduced a bill that would impose stiff new sanctions if the director of national intelligence — not Trump — certifies Russia has interfered in a future election.
The criticism followed an internationally televised press conference with Putin in Helsinki where Trump said, “I have great confidence in my intelligence people, but I will tell you that President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today.” Trump said he doesn’t “see any reason” why Russia would meddle and that the US has acted in “foolish” ways in the past.
His remarks came three days after Special Counsel Robert Mueller, whose investigation Russian election meddling and whether Trump’s presidential campaign had a role, charged 12 Russian military intelligence officials with computer attacks meant to undermine the Democratic Party and its presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton.
Former Republican Representative David Jolly said Congress was at “an inflection point.” “This will be one of those moments the long lens of history remembers,” Jolly, who represented a Florida district from 2014 to 2017, said.
Jolly said that for the first time he believes impeachment of Trump — or removal under the 25th Amendment by declaring him unfit — should be on the table.