USA Today-During much, if not all, of Trump's campaign he sought to enrich himself by pursuing a luxury hotel-condominium-office deal in Russia known as Trump Tower Moscow.
And as a candidate, Trump repeatedly misled or lied to voters about his business with Russia. "I have nothing to do with Russia," he told reporters in July 2016. "I don't deal there," he said during the Oct. 9 presidential debate. Donald Trump visits Moscow on Nov. 5, 1996.
The truth is, Trump had coveted a lucrative hotel project in Russia — whether to build one or license his name to be emblazoned on a skyscraper — for decades. "We will be in Moscow at some point," he said in a 2007 deposition.
....You have to wonder what the fallout would have been if those negotiations had been exposed before Trump debated his Republican primary opponents or Hillary Clinton. The electorate certainly was robbed of knowing about this crucial information at a time when:
-There were news reports that Russia was interfering in the election.
-Trump was expressing praise and admiration for President Vladimir Putin, even as he was insulting hundreds of other people, places and things on Twitter.
-The candidate said that, as president, he would consider easing sanctions placed against Russia for its violent seizure of Crimea.
-Trump was questioning America's continued role in NATO, a bulwark against Russian aggression that Putin has historically despised.
-A plank in the GOP platform regarding U.S. support for Ukraine was watered down.
-Trump challenged Moscow to release Democratic emails that Russians were reported to have hacked.
...Whether Trump was pursuing the arrangement until he clinched the Republican nomination, or right up until he was elected president, isn't the main point. What matters is that a presidential candidate was secretly negotiating a major business deal with a major U.S. adversary — an extraordinary conflict of interest that was concealed from voters.
6 comments:
Also, Trump’s lies to the public about his financial dealings in Russia left him vulnerable to blackmail.
So how is Trump selling out to Russia by:
1. Increasing our oil capacity dramatically which cuts into their only real export and the lifeblood of their economy. We are not a net exporter of oil and gas.
2. Recognizing the opposition in Venezuela which Russia opposes.
3. Killing hundreds of Russian mercs in Syria.
I won't wait for your response because you have none.
Keep blathering on chasing phantoms created by the Hillary campaign!
The foreign policy establishment pursues its own long-standing policy objectives in Syria and Venezuela. Trump just tried to pull out of Syria and was overruled by the Israel Lobby. The fact that Trump is ineffective at delivering on his pro-Russian agenda isn’t proof that he is not compromised - just that he is incompetent.
"A major business deal with a major U.S. adversary"? I sense some narrative creep going on here. The new tone is that doing business in Russia is inherently a treasonous act. That's going to come as quite a shock to the 3,000 American companies that also do business there. Perhaps you know them by their Russian comrade names like Burger King, McDonald's and Apple. Want some more? Chevron, Delta Airlines, ExxonMobil, General Electric, Haliburton, Gokdman Sachs....Run for the hills, Sam! The commies are everywhere!
But Bill,
Russia isn't a communist country anymore, if you haven't noticed.
1) Those are private entities - not candidates for the presidency of the United States
2) Those corporations operate openly and with transparency - unlike Trump who concealed these contacts (while running for the presidency of the United States
3) Trump, as President or even as leader of the Republican Party, is in a position to pervert public policy to benefit a foreign head of state - unlike the corporations you mention
4) Trump is credibly accused of offering bribes to Vladimir Putin in order to get backing for the project - a violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which Trump has inveighed against in the past
So, no - doing business in Russia is not an inherently treasonous act. Being a sneaky crook who uses public office for private gain, buys off dictators, and lies about the whole affair in order to gain a position of public trust that he can then abuse is certainly illegal and arguably treasonous. Pull your head out.
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