In a disaster of an interview on Tuesday, Donald Trump was happy to brag about his friendship with Vladmir Putin, admitting he continued the relationship with the Russian leader even after leaving the Oval Office.
Trump dodged and weaved throughout his interview at the Economic Club of Chicago. But interviewer John Micklethwait, Bloomberg’s editor in chief, attempted to get a direct answer from Trump about his relationship with the Russian president.
“Can you say, yes or no, whether you have talked to Vladimir Putin since you stopped being president?” asked Micklethwait.
“Well, I don’t comment on that, but I will tell you that, if I did, it’s a smart thing,” Trump responded. “If I’m friendly with people, if I have a relationship with people, that’s a good thing, not a bad thing.”
“That sounds very much like you did talk to him,” Micklethwait replied.
Micklethwait: You just mentioned Putin. Can you say whether you have talked to Putin since you stopped being president?
Trump: If I did it is a smart thing. pic.twitter.com/GlDkEUcm8p
— Acyn (@Acyn) October 15, 2024
His answer seems to be a confirmation of revelations last week that Trump has talked to the Russian autocrat at least seven times since leaving the White House. Trump’s team lashed out over that report, made in Bob Woodward’s book War, calling it a “made-up” story by “a truly demented and deranged man.”
However, in his speeches and interviews, including Monday night in Pennsylvania, Trump was happy to gloat, saying, “I get along very well with Putin.”
