"This AIN'T good": Donald Trump's "APPALLING" joint presser with Putin raises VERY important question [video]

File this one under: Bad Trump.

Here's the transcript of Trump's answer when he was asked whether he believes Putin or U.S. intelligence. pic.twitter.com/i4xs4H4QKh

— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) July 16, 2018

Reporter: Do you hold Russia accountable for anything?

Trump: We’re all to blame pic.twitter.com/nFoSS7UVCK

— POLITICO (@politico) July 16, 2018

Uh, yeah … NO. Russia became a thugocracy all on their own. We didn’t build that. They made that happen. And to put America on the same moral plane as Russia — on an international stage, no less — is pretty disgusting. If that’s supposed to be a show of strength, sorry, Donald, but you’re doing it wrong.

Plenty of conservatives are rightly appalled by the president’s remarks:

.@BenSasse: “When the President plays these moral equivalence games, he gives Putin a propaganda win he desperately needs.” pic.twitter.com/sAXo59IAlK

— Jenna Lifhits (@jlifhits) July 16, 2018

A person can be in favor of improving relations with Russia, in favor of meeting with Putin, and still think something is not right here.

— Justin Amash (@justinamash) July 16, 2018

The problem w Trump’s approach to Russian interference in our election is he sees it only through the lense of whether he won or lost. He did win, but that shouldn’t blind him to how wrong it was for Russia to interfere. I believe Mueller & the intell community. Trump should too.

— Ari Fleischer (@AriFleischer) July 16, 2018

America First*

*Unless it upsets Russia

— Stephen Gutowski (@StephenGutowski) July 16, 2018

Trump just hand-delivered the best propaganda footage Putin could have asked for.

— Natalie Johnson (@nataliejohnsonn) July 16, 2018

Appalling moral equivalence & equivocation — rooted in an embarrassing, juvenile, insecure, consuming obsession over his own legitimacy. Easily one of his worst days as president. And again, juxtapose that performance with how he just treated our European & North American allies.

— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) July 16, 2018

Let’s just say if we were Trump, we’d leave this day out of our presidential memoirs.

I am asked what the practical effect of a president, in essence, taking the side of its attacker on foreign soil will be, and I don't know. This is uncharted territory.

— Noah Rothman (@NoahCRothman) July 16, 2018

Well, not totally uncharted …

TRUMP: "I think we're all to blame."

OBAMA: "There have been times where America has shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive."

— David Rutz (@DavidRutz) July 16, 2018

Trump’s just following in the footsteps of his predecessor. That doesn’t make his behavior remotely morally acceptable, but it does raise a really, really important question: Where’s the intellectual consistency with regard to POTUSes prostrating themselves before tyrants?

'We've both made mistakes. We're both bad. '

It's so weird, I have this odd, obviously false memory, that Republicans hated when Presidents said things like this abroad. Strange.

— Caleb Howe (@CalebHowe) July 16, 2018

If Obama had said . . .

Oh never mind. I give up.

— David French (@DavidAFrench) July 16, 2018

Remember people bitching about Obama's "apology tour"? Good timeshttps://t.co/rwKD2fmunY

— David Burge (@iowahawkblog) July 16, 2018

Democrats decrying Trump today gave Obama a pass when he let Putin get away with murder (literally, in some cases). And conservatives who criticized Obama for his weak spine should be up in arms today. All conservatives; not just some.

Think of the stuff we complained about Obama saying about America for 8 years… now think about the tongue bath Trump just gave our "no. 1 geopolitical foe?"

Yeah, this ain't good.

— UnwillingtoWorkBlackMan ???? (@NevilleD35) July 16, 2018

What it really comes down to is this:@realDonaldTrump showed he is a spineless coward today.

People that attacked Obama for being witless and flaccid can't today defend Trump after this showing.

Trump's 'America First' slogan was proven meaningless after Helsinki.

— Pradheep J. Shanker, M.D., M.S. (@Neoavatara) July 16, 2018

That was so gross and awful. It’s exactly the kind of answer Obama would have been crushed for.

— tamer abouras (@tamer_abouras) July 16, 2018

Yep. Intellectual consistency needs to be consistent. Otherwise, it’s meaningless.

Helpful hint: As president, don’t take the side of a dictator over the intelligence community…..ESPECIALLY ON TV.

— Mary #FlyTheW (@mchastain81) July 16, 2018

No matter what letter you’ve got after your name.

You can love Trump, you can be thrilled he vanquished Hillary, you can be right that Obama’s foreign policy was clownish, but call it here: this was atrocious and no American president should ever behave this way.

— Karol Markowicz (@karol) July 16, 2018