The usual anti-Trump Republicans offer rebukes to Donald Trump’s Helsinki comments , in which he praised Russian President Putin and stood by the Russian against his own countries Intelligence Community….
The fear of Republican lawmakers to cross Trump is still real…..
Lawmakers are well aware that despite the media onslaught against Trump in the last 24 hours or so?
Republicans voters have stood by Trump thru thick and thin, even changing their views of Putin for the better….
Most Republican lawmakers that are in office are cautiously waiting to see how the wind blows on this…..
“The president must appreciate that Russia is not our ally,” said House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.). “The United States must be focused on holding Russia accountable and putting an end to its vile attacks on democracy.”
Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), a Trump ally and a fierce critic of the FBI’s investigation of election meddling, released a statement calling on top administration officials to tell Trump “it is possible to conclude Russia interfered with our election in 2016 without delegitimizing his electoral success.”
Republican senators also were quick in their criticism of Trump’s statements. “Shameful,” tweeted Sen. Jeff Flake (Ariz.). “Bizarre and flat-out wrong,” wrote Sen. Ben Sasse (Neb.) in reference to Trump’s separate assertion that both countries were to blame for their deteriorating relationship. “Missed opportunity,” said Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (S.C.), who added that Trump’s answer “will be seen by Russia as a sign of weakness and create far more problems than it solves.”
Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) denounce President Trump’s lack of response to Vladimir Putin’s denial of election interference.
Since Trump’s inauguration, members of his party on Capitol Hill have stifled much of their criticism of the president to preserve their own electoral viability and their ability to maintain private channels of communication with him. Trump’s statements on Monday threatened that stance perhaps more than at any time since his defense last summer of Nazi sympathizers in Charlottesville during a dispute over Confederate statues.
At the Capitol on Monday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) declined to respond to a reporter’s questions about whether he was disappointed with Trump’s statements.
“As I have said repeatedly, the Russians are not our friends and I entirely agree with the assessment of our intelligence community,” he said as he walked into the Senate chamber.
Some of the sharpest words Monday came from senators who have focused on foreign policy, a position that has often left them at odds with a president intent on upending traditional U.S. relationships….