James Clapper: Trump’s Behavior At Presser Was ‘Very, Very Disturbing’

Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper organizes his papers during a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill on May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. / AFP PHOTO / Brendan Smialowski ... Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper organizes his papers during a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill on May 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. / AFP PHOTO / Brendan Smialowski (Photo credit should read BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images) MORE LESS
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Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper joined the chorus of lawmakers, U.S. officials and former intelligence operatives who were dumbfounded by President Donald Trump’s performance during a presser with Putin.

Clapper said Trump’s meek behavior was “amazing and very, very disturbing.”

“You know, like everyone else, I’m struggling with some way to capture or describe what we just witnessed. It is truly unbelievable,” he told CNN Monday. “On the world stage in front of the entire globe, the President of the United States essentially capitulated and seems intimidated by Vladimir Putin. So it was amazing and very, very disturbing.”

“He just is very reticent about direct personal confrontation,” he continued. “So just as he did in the UK with Theresa May, bad mouth her in an interview, but yet when faced with a personal confrontation, a personal engagement, he won’t do it. It’s even worse when it’s our arch adversary, Russia, and his opposite person, Vladimir Putin. … While he likes to project the image of being a tough guy, he really isn’t.”

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  1. Avatar for caltg caltg says:

    Clearly Trump is an existential threat to the United States!

  2. “You know, like everyone else, I’m struggling with some way to capture or describe what we just witnessed. It is truly unbelievable,”

    Yep

  3. On the world stage in front of the entire globe, the President of the United States essentially capitulated and seems intimidated by Vladimir Putin. So it was amazing and very, very disturbing.

    Yet kneeling during the National Anthem is much more harshly criticized by some.

  4. CIA will start dusting off “Operation 8645”…

  5. "While [Trump] likes to project the image of being a tough guy, he really isn’t.”
    Amen to that, Mr Clapper. Trump has talked big and threatening against the President of Mexico - but folded meekly when they met face to face. He tweeted apocolyptically against Kim Jung-un, but kissed up to him when they met face to face. He ran down Prime Minister Theresa May but face to face with her? Crickets. With Vladmir Putin - well, we know Trump worships him and has never said a word against him. What could we have expected, other than fanboy groveling?

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