Make Russia Great Again

[Dill]

(02-26-2020, 09:03 PM)Mike M (the other one) Wrote: LOL Obviously missing some things here.
I already mentioned the ejections of the 35 or so Russians and obviously wasn't nearly enough, even the sanctions drawn up and then Enforced by Trump.

Punish? Is not tossing out 35 diplomats not a punishment along with the Sanctions?

Of course that is a "punishment." Russia is a sovereign nation which deliberately attacked the U.S. And punishment is in that case an appropriate part of deterrence. (And by the way, this isn't Fox News: if you looked at the links I put up, you can see that Trump has opposed enforcing Congressional sanctions. He was working to get them lifted before he was sworn in.)

Facebook is a US corporation, headquartered in the US, which did not deliberately attack the U.S. It operated a platform which would be exploited by others. So the point is not to "punish" them, but to institute policies and controls to prevent the Russians from using them again.

(02-26-2020, 09:03 PM)Mike M (the other one) Wrote: Would you rather Trump directly and verbally accuse Putin in public and get ready to run for the Red Button? or try to gloss it over and keep things somewhat peaceful and handle it internally?
Honestly, we are back to Trump can do nothing right.

Absolutely I would rather Trump directly and verbally accuse Putin in Public, as Bernie did last night and as Obama did in 2016.  And as Jeb Bush or Ted Cruz or Maro Rubio or lindsey Graham or Kasich would have done, had any one of them become president.

How would you "handle it internally"?  This is not like allowing the Chinese to save public face while chastising them behind the scenes for human rights violations. We are talking about an ONGOING ATTACK on US property and institutions. The options are clearly not either/or: "the red button" or silent acquiescence.  For Trump "handle it internally" means just keeping knowledge of it away from Congress and the people. Why should the Russians stop when they can play the president? ("It was really Ukraine" says Putin. "I'll send Rudy to get to the bottom of it," says Trump.)

Why do you constantly frame this attack as if nothing can be done about it? To legitimate Trump's inaction?

If so then, honestly, we are back to Trump can do nothing wrong. Cuz if we recognize that in this case he has been continually--for three years now--putting partisan interest over US national security, we'd have to admit that is bad. VERY bad, as in complete dereliction of duty.   Is that why you are unable to recognize that the many obvious proactive options that were open to Obama are still open to Trump--and he chooses not only to ignore them, but also to prevent Congress and the people from hearing about the danger?

It's like Trump's own paralysis, in the face of foreign attack by the dictator he so wants to befriend, is flowing downhill from the White House to Trump's base.