Section: Salon (USA)
Trump’s foreign policy: Bizarre and inconsistent, or more strategic than we think?
(Credit: AP/Pablo Martinez/Efrem Lukatsky) When Trump administration officials announced an end to the covert CIA program to arm and train Syrian rebels in their fight against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, many framed it as a win for Russia — and while it was indeed something Russia had been seeking for years, it also, more importantly, made...
Trump’s hitman melts down: But is there method to Anthony Scaramucci’s madness?
Anthony Scaramucci (Credit: AP/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) I’m not sure how many more days like Thursday this country can take. The most important event was the defeat of the “skinny repeal” bill in the Senate — which actually happened in the wee hours of Friday morning — with Sen. John McCain casting a dramatic “no” vote to scuttle...
Rick Perry stuck in pig manure: Russian pranksters troll energy secretary
(Credit: AP/Eric Gay/Getty/Tarzan9280) If Rick Perry thought his most embarrassing political moment was forgetting the name of the Energy Department at a 2011 presidential debate, he was wrong. Thanks to a pair of Russian prank callers, the energy secretary has emerged as someone who doesn’t realize that he’s being tricked — even...
White House says Trump is open to signing legislation on Russia sanctions: Report
(Credit: AP/Alex Brandon) After a Senate and House leaders reached an agreement on a bill expected to impose harsher sanctions on Russia, the White House said on Sunday that President Donald Trump would be open to signing the legislation, according to Reuters. Republicans and Democrats reached a deal for new sanctions to be placed on Russia, Iran...
Neck-deep in Russkies
Donald Trump Jr.; Jared Kushner; Paul Manafort (Credit: AP/Darron Cummings/Susan Walsh/Matt Rourke) Something tells me there are a lot of Salon readers out there who have worked on political campaigns at the national, state, or local level — people who have done everything from calling voters on election day to strategizing with the candidate....
Trump surrogates channel Clinton administration in denouncing special investigation into Russian meddling
Newt Gingrich during a July 20, 2017 interview on the Fox News Channel program “Hannity.” (Credit: Photo via screenshot) In an effort to push back against the special investigation into Russia’s attempts to interfere in the 2016 election, President Donald Trump’s top surrogates appear to be reaching back to the 1990s for...
Trump’s White House is divided over Russia
(Credit: AP/Getty/Salon) There is a rift between President Donald Trump and both his national security and foreign policy advisers. According to a new Associated Press report, the top White House officials have continued to urge Trump to take a cautious approach when dealing with Russia and things have only gotten worse since a second meeting...
Trump’s Rasputin: Steve Bannon doesn’t have Russia ties, but encapsulates infamous advisor’s spiritualism
Steve Bannon (Credit: Getty/Win McNamee) A few days ago, I noted that Steve Bannon seems to be the only member of President Donald Trump’s inner circle untouched by the Russia scandal, which is one reason that President Trump has turned to him to run his war room to fight all the “fake news” about Russia. He’s taken to the task with...
Donald Trump defends his second, secret meeting with Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin; Donald Trump (Credit: AP/Evan Vucci) President Donald Trump met with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in a second and previously undisclosed meeting during the G-20 summit. A senior official told The Washington Post that Trump left his seat during a dinner for G-20 officials and approached Putin, who was only joined by his...
Donald Trump’s deep connections to dirty Russian money: The trail leads back more than 30 years
Partially completed Trump Tower, Dec. 23, 1981. (Credit: AP/Suzanne Vlamis) On Air Force One on Thursday, President Trump actually took questions from reporters but there was some confusion about whether or not the exchange was on the record. The White House later released a transcript that left out a couple of things. Since reporters were...
