President Donald Trump is receiving harsh criticism from Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) after he called reports suggesting Russia placed bounties on American troops in Afghanistan a “hoax.”
MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle suggested Trump has not said anything about Vladimir Putin or placing sanctions on Russia following the revelation of the intelligence.
Pelosi chimed in listing other things Trump has called a hoax and ultimately called him one herself.
“He uses a hoax because he’ll say this is a hoax and it’s a hoax that they are 24/7 trying to disrupt our election as they did in 2016,” Pelosi said.
She added, “He says coronavirus is a hoax, the fact is the president himself is a hoax.”
Watch her comments below:
Pelosi went on to say the “White House has done a con” by arguing that because the intelligence agencies could not come to a consensus on the intelligence it was not worthy of Trump’s attention.
She argued the lives of Americans should be his top priority.
“No, the death of our young people in Afghanistan or any place is worthy of the president’s attention even if it’s caused by his friend Vladimir Putin,” Pelosi said.
According to Pelosi, the nation has to respond to this by placing additional sanctions on Russia.
She questioned what Trump’s move would have been if it were any other country and suggested his reactions always lead back to Russia.
“You just wonder what the president would be thinking if this kind of intelligence had come forth about any other country,” Pelosi said. “But every time it’s Russia, as I’ve said over and over with this president, all roads lead to Putin.”
National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien came to Trump’s defense on Wednesday claiming Trump was not previously briefed on the intelligence because the allegations could not be corroborated, as IJR previously reported.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also sparred with reporters on Wednesday after he expressed his frustration with news organizations as he believes they are putting lives at risk by reporting on the matter, as IJR previously reported.