Schiff Op-Ed Sets Trump Straight on Putin

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The Daily Beast @thedailybeast
NEW: To put America first, President Trump must stand up to Vladimir Putin, @RepAdamSchiff writes http://thebea.st/2tNIZ35


- Schiff: Putin Aims To Take Down Liberal Democracy. To Put America First, Trump Must Stand Up To Him -
The Russian president who helped elected the American one intends to take down the world’s liberal democracies. Will Trump call him out when they meet face to face?

If Trump fails to stand up to Putin and forcefully raise the issue of Russian interference in our elections, the Kremlin will conclude that he is too weak to stand up to them at all. That makes his statement today—that no one really knows who was behind the hacking and dumping of Hillary Clinton's emails—more than discouraging. Far from putting America first, if he continues to cling to this personal fiction, he will be elevating Russian interests above all others...

This would be a historic mistake, with damaging implications for our foreign policy for years to come. Because what the Russians have in mind goes well beyond interference in one election, or the restoration of Russian dominance in what it considers to be its sphere of influence into a profound challenge to a rules-based international order that has been of incalculable benefit to freedom-loving people around the world...

Apart from opposing Clinton, there was every reason for the Russian government to prefer Donald Trump, who over the course of the campaign belittled NATO, celebrated Brexit and a further weakening of Europe, expressed a common purpose with Russia in Syria notwithstanding our very different interests on the survival of the Assad regime, and most significantly, made clear his willingness to revisit our economic sanctions on Russia.

But we would make a grave mistake to assume the Russian intervention was solely about hurting Clinton or helping Trump, or even its main object. Above all, Putin wanted to tear down American democracy just as he is assaulting other liberal democracies around the world. We are in a new battle of ideas, pitting not communism against capitalism, but authoritarianism against democracy and representative government. America must not shrink from its essential role as democracy’s champion.


read more: http://www.thedailybeast.com/schiff-putin-aims-to-take-down-liberal-democracy-to-put-america-first-trump-must-stand-up-to-him?via=twitter_page

[pangaia]

1. OMG ! This is the FIRST time I have every heard anyone other than me and others

right here on DU state Putin's real goal.

""""Putin Aims To Take Down Liberal Democracy. """""


I probably missed some/a bunch.....

But nevertheless, GO SCHIFF...!!!!!!!!
get on the Tee Vee where the whole world can hear this....

And where the fuck are other Democrats stating this? Unless I have been asleep, which is very possible...

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2. he was on Chris Hayes' show t'nite

[ProudLib72]

3. Right?

Oh, and by the way, that large animal in the corner of the room. That's an elephant.

Too bad it didn't start months ago. I think they were being careful. Now that so much is out in the open, it would feed into the RW narrative to call it anything other than it is.