'Very much counter to the plan': Trump defies advisers in embrace of Putin

[brooklynite]

Source: Washington Post

Administration officials had hoped that maybe, just maybe, Monday’s summit between President Trump and Russian President Vladmir Putin would end differently — without a freewheeling 46-minute news conference in which Trump attacked his own FBI on foreign soil and warmly praised archrival Russia.

Ahead of the meeting, staffers provided Trump with some 100 pages of briefing materials aimed at laying out a tough posture toward Putin, but the president ignored most of it, according to one person familiar with the discussions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose internal deliberations. Trump’s remarks were “very much counter to the plan,” the person said.

“Everyone around Trump” was urging him to take a firm stance with Putin, according to a second person familiar with the preparations. Before Monday’s meeting, the second person said, advisers covered matters from Russia’s annexation of Crimea to its interference in the U.S. elections, but Trump “made a game-time decision” to handle the summit his way.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/very-much-counter-to-the-plan-trump-defies-advisers-in-embrace-of-putin/2018/07/16/b2176bfe-8921-11e8-a345-a1bf7847b375_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.dacad108cc62

[underpants]

1. 100 pages?

That dumb mother....thinks the M on McDonald's fries means it's mmmmmm good

[exboyfil]

2. Should have gone with the empathy notecards

Remember those.

[blugbox]

17. I hear you. nt

[exboyfil]

18. He did, He did

at his follow up today. I am so proud of him.

"THERE WAS NO COLLUSION"

Hat tip to the photographer who recorded it for the history books.

[blugbox]

23. Haha yep!

Same stupid sharpie notes too!

[BumRushDaShow]

3. "hoped that maybe, just maybe"

Over and over and over, they keep hoping and praying that he will somehow, someday "shift" and become "normal". They refuse to accept the fact that it will NEVER fucking happen. And the longer they stay in denial, the more the country is compromised and damaged.

[CatMor]

4. For them to think trump would read 100 pages or even one page .

of those briefing points is ridiculous in itself. They know well enough trump is beholden to Putin for his previous dealings with Russia. It will certainly be interesting to see what the Republicans do from now on.

[YessirAtsaFact]

5. Did anyone believe OrangeTurd was going to read 100 pages?

Trump might read a 100 Page graphic novel featuring erotic illustrations, but never 100 pages of text.

He doesn’t read that much in a month.

Stupid staff.

[vlyons]

6. It didn't matter what WH aides advised the Dirty Traitor

He was ALWAYS going to kiss Putin's ass. He went there on purpose to kiss his ass and pay fealty, because Trump is a Dirty Traitor. You can bet that Putin recorded his private meeting with the Dirty Traitor. Whether it's a pee-pee tape or records of Trump laundering Russian money in his real estate, whatever it is that Putin holds over the Dirty traitor's head, it is sufficient to keep Trump as a captive asset.

[PatSeg]

15. And Trump has decided he does need advice

He has come to the conclusion that he is his own best counsel and will do things his way.

[FakeNoose]

22. Absolutely! that's why it had to be a "private" meeting

Cheeto had no use for anybody's notes, and of course he didn't read them.

It's not mentioned often, but Cheeto is a contrarian, meaning he does the OPPOSITE of what anybody tells him. That's his nature, so the only way to control him is to tell him to do the opposite of what you really want. His handlers really need to figure this out.

[tanyev]

7. They also shelling out a lot of money for singing lessons for their pet pigs?

[exboyfil]

8. I do wonder why Putin

would harm the effectiveness of his most useful tool. Has he read the tea leafs and knows that it will not make a difference. Maybe the propaganda benefit at home is so great it makes it worth it. Maybe Trump can't stay on script even when his control agent instructs him to. Maybe this is a stress test to see how much Putin/Trump can get away with.

[Pluvious]

16. Putin knows the shelf life of his asset is limited...

I assume the boss wants it both ways, strengthen this country and self, and weaken everyone else.

History will struggle to explain how we all allowed and aided his objectives so effectively, how a majority of us could not see and act.

WTF eh

[Mopar151]

21. Chewed his "protoge" a brand new one!

"How could you let them indict Russian Army officers? How could you! Can't you do anything right?"

[roscoeroscoe]

9. Now this is funny

It's not our fault! Wah!

[watoos]

10. Give me a break, Staffers?

What staffers? Hannity, Tucker Carlson, Steven Miller, Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones, and a name that I have been curious about that no one has ever mentioned, Dr. Steve Pieczernik.

[heaven05]

11. his son killing

Last edited Tue Jul 17, 2018, 10:21 AM - Edit history (1)

animals while 'on safari' in Africa, he's giving away the shop and endangering americans for pennies on the dollar and to hide openly known, by someone, incriminating evidence of his known very perverted sexual side of life. I mean he did brag about grabbing others by their private parts, without consent, mind you. He bragged. Now he has grabbed all decent Americans by our private parts and said STFU, I'm a potus. Trump the turnip, as the orange shit for brains head of this current 'first family', is a very dangerous sociopath.

What's going to happen now??

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jul/17/trumps-wildlife-board-claims-trophy-hunting-saves-endangered-animals

[Lonestarblue]

12. Why are taxpayers even paying the salaries of these so-called advisers?

Trump does not listen to anyone anymore, so why are our dollars being wasted on advisers who have no impact whatsoever on a president who treats the presidency like a game of bumper cars, lurching from crisis to crisis, all of his own creation. Trump has lurched from kill Obamacare (unsuccessful), to North Korea (unsuccessful), to the G7 meeting (unsuccessful), to a trade war with much of the world (failing economically), locking babies and children in cages (failed policy), to a NATO meeting (unsuccessful), and now Helsinki (unsuccessful). So far, the only successes Trump can claim are rewarding wealthy billionaires with tax cuts and alienating every one of our allies, who no longer trust the United States. Is there any red line that Trump will cross that will cause Republicans to remember that they also swore an oath to the Constitution and the country and begin fulfilling their role to serve as a check on a rogue president? Republicans are behaving like spineless lemmings who are willing to sell out their country for the sake of their own political power. Truly disgusting behavior.

[Javaman]

13. "staffers provided Trump with some 100 pages of briefing materials" of which he read none. nt

[Javaman]

14. the orange asshole is a coward and has always been a coward.

he hates confrontation and will praise even the worst of people because he seeks approval by any means.

we are sooooooooooo fucked.

at the end of the day, while I think he is truly a psychopath, what is plainly evident in the orange assholes personality is that he has major daddy issues.

[Blue_Tires]

19. Yeah, it's really this bad:

Link to tweet

[ancianita]

20. 45's "advisers" should either resign or now stand as enablers. "Everyone" had better show integrity

or they stand complicit from this day forward, which is now beyond enabling.

Ass covering won't work now, not even as documentation, if Trump's signature doesn't validate that they "told him."

Let this traitor run his presidency "his way" without them, or reap the legal consequences of "just doing my job."