Update 2pm London:
JUST NOW: Trump clarifies statements on Putin – "I believe he believes that" he didn't meddle in 2016 elex but "as to whether I believe it or not, I'm with our agencies, especially as currently constituted with their leadership."
— Ali Vitali (@alivitali) November 12, 2017
Trump backs U.S. intel agencies 'as currently constituted' on Russia https://t.co/gMfRqxg1js pic.twitter.com/JzNCDVtRuP
— POLITICO (@politico) November 12, 2017
Trump offers to mediate South China Sea dispute: "I'm a very good mediator" https://t.co/hsYgVGi6yL pic.twitter.com/9mz2nMIrnD
— The Hill (@thehill) November 12, 2017
Donald Trump insists he would never, ever call North Korean leader 'short and fat'https://t.co/IfHbOfWFEZ
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) November 12, 2017
"He said he didn’t meddle. I asked him again. You can only ask so many times," Trump said of his talk with Putin https://t.co/VQJNaXjL2U
— NYT National News (@NYTNational) November 12, 2017
Vladimir Putin says he is 'insulted' by allegations of collusion with the Trump campaign https://t.co/dXCCF8TeFl pic.twitter.com/JnbwAALMoJ
— The Independent (@Independent) November 12, 2017
https://t.co/V0b7o6UXDh "The idea that things will return to normal after a single Trump term is too sanguine. The world is moving on."
— Kenneth Silber (@kennethsilber) November 11, 2017
Harvey Weinstein and other powerful men are facing repercussions for their alleged abusive behavior. Will the President? https://t.co/OqHsxktKJx
— The New Yorker (@NewYorker) November 12, 2017
Earlier:
JUST IN: Trump said he tries "so hard" to be Kim Jong Un's friend: I would never call him "short and fat" https://t.co/ZAN5gVmfoH pic.twitter.com/G4xH2l4tdy
— The Hill (@thehill) November 12, 2017
Trump blasts 'haters and fools' on Russia relations, 'short and fat' Kim Jong-Un https://t.co/OjxyJdIkA7 pic.twitter.com/zetGIqfKQz
— POLITICO (@politico) November 12, 2017
Kim Jong Un called Trump a "lunatic old man" who might start a "nuclear war."
Trump let "lunatic" and "nuclear war" slide and complained about "old." pic.twitter.com/UM6OlqYCOi
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) November 12, 2017
Trump careens off script on Russia after Putin meeting https://t.co/SV7oizw6XR pic.twitter.com/CRM0RW31Pf
— POLITICO (@politico) November 12, 2017
I would like to know which people Trump means when he says "people will die" because of the Russia investigation https://t.co/nCa9q2g4Dk pic.twitter.com/Jz51XQoHIR
— Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) November 11, 2017
Kremlin denies Trump asked Putin about Russian election interference https://t.co/BcfcNE99no pic.twitter.com/NstF0Ka6gR
— The Hill (@thehill) November 11, 2017
POTUS embraces Putin yet again telling world he believes former KGB agent’s denial of attack on our election over our own Intel public servants, calling them “political hacks.” Disturbing and shamelessly unpatriotic, on Veterans Day no less.
— Sally Yates (@SallyQYates) November 11, 2017
CIA Director Mike Pompeo stands by US intelligence assessments that Russia meddled in the 2016 election, despite President Trump saying he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin when he says his country did not interfere https://t.co/owWXupbDMy pic.twitter.com/hWNfVxnX2e
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) November 11, 2017
Trump continues to slam former US intel leaders: “I mean, give me a break, they are political hacks…I mean, you have Brennan, you have Clapper and you have Comey..So you look at that and you have President Putin very strongly, vehemently says he had nothing to do with them”
— Erin Burnett (@ErinBurnett) November 11, 2017
In my years of reporting on Russia, I too have found that if you ask a former KGB agent an accusatory question about his actions, he will generally be straight with you. https://t.co/V3L6kAKEDn
— Julia Ioffe (@juliaioffe) November 11, 2017
Trump on Putin & election meddling: "He says that very strongly, he really seems to be insulted by it and he says he didn’t do it. He is very, very strong in the fact that he didn’t do it. You have President Putin very strongly, vehemently says he has nothing to do with that."
— Jennifer Epstein (@jeneps) November 11, 2017
pres trump on foreign soil calling 3 u.s. intel professionals “political hacks” while praising Putin
and believing his denial of Russian elect interference.
where is GOP outrage?— Tom Brokaw (@tombrokaw) November 11, 2017
An incomplete list….
Mueller: lying
Comey: lying
Obama: lying
Clinton: lying
Federal judges: lying
His sex assault accusers: lying
Scientist about climate change: lying
Doctors about Affordable Care Act: lying
Mother of slain U.S. soldier: lying
Putin: He means it. https://t.co/MDucxl3rMq— Andrew Cohen (@JustADCohen) November 11, 2017
Imagine 1962: Kennedy tells the nation, “Khrushchev says there are no missiles in Cuba & really means it. What can I do?”
— Ronald Klain (@RonaldKlain) November 11, 2017
There's nothing "America First" about taking the word of KGB colonel over US intelligence community. There's no "principled realism" in cooperating w/ Russia to prop up murderous Assad regime. To believe otherwise is naive & places nat'l security at risk. https://t.co/SYiVHtHXPX
— John McCain (@SenJohnMcCain) November 11, 2017
.@realDonaldTrump believes an ex-KGB agent over 17 U.S. intel agencies. That’s outrageous..@POTUS ‘s denial of facts is troubling, & I continue to question his willingness to fully implement the Russia sanctions law overwhelmingly passed by Congress.
— Senator Ben Cardin (@SenatorCardin) November 11, 2017
The purposeful gutting of American power abroad is mystifying. If you didn't know better, you'd think some rival government was running our foreign policy. https://t.co/YL6l40472j
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) November 11, 2017
Firm founded by KGB spy to guard US Moscow embassy – BBC News https://t.co/oUBKsmb057
— 🗽Jeffrey Levin 🗽 (@jilevin) November 11, 2017
For what it's worth, supporting Putin over every U.S. intelligence agency is more "disrespectful" than taking a knee.
— Matt McDermott (@mattmfm) November 11, 2017
A reminder: change in confidence in US leadership from Obama to Trump
Germany: -75%
South Korea: -71%
France: -70%
Canada: -61%
UK: -57%
Australia: -55%
Japan: -54%
Russia: +42%
Source: Pew Research— Brian Klaas (@brianklaas) November 11, 2017
This is how a United States president should look at Putin. pic.twitter.com/i03uwxAEK4
— Kanisha Jackson (@Kanisha1Jackson) November 11, 2017
Find out how Russian money is playing havoc with democracy @BylineFest @JesusCollegeCam Cambridge 14 Nov https://t.co/slyniMCLCi
— Byline Festival (@BylineFest) November 11, 2017
***
ELSEWHERE IN THE SCORCHED EARTH OF TRUMPWORLD
Trump got to Danang just as news broke that the 11 nations — that once wanted TPP deal with the US — announced a tentative agreement among themselves. https://t.co/zhfROBDOVi
— Kylie Atwood (@kylieatwood) November 11, 2017
The conservative legal movement, begun in the 1980s, is reaching a new high water mark under Trump/GOP, & the judicial confirmation politics playbook has been fundamentally transformed. This will be on front page of tomorrow's NYT https://t.co/qTQXuTnS3e
— Charlie Savage (@charlie_savage) November 11, 2017
Dem senator: Delaying Alabama Senate election over Moore allegations is like a "dictatorship" https://t.co/anvSeUtCA7 pic.twitter.com/W5quhOxCve
— The Hill (@thehill) November 11, 2017
Trump (while asked about Roy Moore allegations) says he doesn't watch much TV. "They like to say I watch television—people w/ fake sources. You know, fake reporters, fake sources. But I don’t get to watch much television. Primarily because of documents. I’m reading documents." pic.twitter.com/URP765HjFq
— Ali Vitali (@alivitali) November 11, 2017
Trump dominates the GOP base. Party leaders live with the consequences https://t.co/dQVYX1rL8L
— Washington Post (@washingtonpost) November 11, 2017
Spent the day with a group of serious, operational politics Rs. Many were Trump voters. Mood: grim. Path forward: uncertain. Hatred of Bannon: stratospheric. Weariness with Trump: extreme.
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) November 10, 2017
Kushner told CNN to fire hundreds of employees over 2016 election coverage https://t.co/B6mQOZWmQ1 pic.twitter.com/9pV77l9lSU
— The Hill (@thehill) November 11, 2017
Woman 'leaves date' after discovering man voted for Trump https://t.co/t6lXxMEQ9V
— The Independent (@Independent) November 11, 2017
***
WORLD
A large nationalist march organized by far-right groups has overshadowed official state events marking Poland’s Independence Day https://t.co/sy5vC68vbO
— AP Europe (@AP_Europe) November 11, 2017
60,000 Nazis marched on Warsaw today.
banners read:
“Clean Blood"
“Europe Will Be White"
"Pray for Islamic Holocaust"https://t.co/TcwdUqHWTM pic.twitter.com/P8gHIPZrBT— Jesse Lehrich (@JesseLehrich) November 11, 2017
Protesters flood Barcelona demanding release of separatist leaders https://t.co/uBwEvI36YT pic.twitter.com/zI5LPjop7h
— Reuters Top News (@Reuters) November 11, 2017
Exclusive: How Saudi Arabia turned on Lebanon's Hariri https://t.co/2KjGbWmKxv
— Phil Stewart (@phildstewart) November 11, 2017
Getting more and more surreal… pic.twitter.com/NrYTZHxm0Z
— Liz Sly (@LizSly) November 11, 2017
***
BATSHIT BREXIT BRITAIN
More trouble for Mrs May: 40 MPs sign letter of no confidence. 8 more and a leadership election could be triggered. https://t.co/UoY9zieBIR
— John O'Brennan (@JohnOBrennan2) November 11, 2017
Boris Johnson met ‘London professor’ linked to FBI’s Russia investigation https://t.co/43xzTO5RrA
— The Guardian (@guardian) November 11, 2017
A meeting in London: A Russian woman, a Maltese academic with a faltering career, and an ambitious adviser to Donald Trump https://t.co/OqotaxvHyX
— NYT Politics (@nytpolitics) November 11, 2017
Police investigate claims of illegitimate #UKIP ‘donations’ linked to Brietbart in #brexit referendum https://t.co/xDsNrLJYoW
— Richard Corbett (@RCorbettMEP) November 11, 2017
Boris and Gove send May secret letter with instructions for a hard Brexit https://t.co/ERs8Fn6Jvk
— The Independent (@Independent) November 11, 2017
The Observer's powerful editorial on the contemptible mess May's "Crazy Gang" are making of Britain.
Hit Pause Now. https://t.co/87NpBBBmTe
— Schona Jolly QC (@WomaninHavana) November 11, 2017
… reneging on the most important international commitments you have made in your modern history – the commitments of EU membership – is not a great advertisement for your potential as a future partner in international affairs. https://t.co/DKvptHduHA
— Ulrich Tromm (@kurt_obruny) November 12, 2017
There is a great big problem with this. For example, in Bridlington, a typical east coast fishing port, their catch of crabs and lobsters goes to France, where they eat such things with greater gusto than the UK. Guess what will happen post-Brexit… pic.twitter.com/OOdG6eoyl5
— David Banks (@DBanksy) November 11, 2017
Ireland's PM may have to consider whether he risks derailing the whole Brexit process https://t.co/vUXgDiz4v2 pic.twitter.com/RTHSBVMUTi
— Bloomberg Brexit (@Brexit) November 11, 2017
