Rep. Adam Schiff, California Democrat, said Monday that Russia can get away with basically anything right now and rest assured that President Trump will likely not hold them accountable.
“I think in his world view, you’re either with him or you’re against him, and Vladimir Putin has been with him,” Mr. Schiff, the ranking member on the House Intelligence Committee, said of Mr. Trump.
“He’s been with him in the election with the Russian interference, he’s been with him in saying nice things about him, and now Donald Trump has staked his reputation on having a better relationship with Russia,” Mr. Schiff said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
“So it’s almost as if there’s nothing Putin can do now that will get Donald Trump to admit error, which is gravely concerning to me given we have now this escalation of violence by the Russians in Ukraine,” he said.
“Can we ever expect Donald Trump to call out Putin on this and admit that his new Russia policy is a failure? I think the Russians can get away with pretty much anything right now, and that concerns me tremendously,” he said.
A White House readout of Mr. Trump’s recent conversation with President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine referred to the country’s “long-running conflict with Russia.”
“We will work with Ukraine, Russia, and all other parties involved to help them restore peace along the border,” Mr. Trump said Saturday.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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