Trump Secretly Stayed in Touch With Putin After Leaving Office, Book Says

[Drum]

Source: New York Times

Former President Donald J. Trump has secretly spoken with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia as many as seven times since leaving office, even as he was pressuring Republicans to block military aid to Ukraine to fight Russian invaders, according to a new book by the journalist Bob Woodward.

The book, titled “War” and scheduled to be published next week, describes a scene in early 2024 at Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Trump’s estate in Florida, when the former president ordered an aide out of his office so he could conduct a phone call with Mr. Putin. The unidentified aide said the two may have spoken a half-dozen other times as well since Mr. Trump left the White House.

The book also reports that Mr. Trump, while still in office early during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, secretly sent Mr. Putin what were then rare tests for the virus for the Russian’s personal use. Mr. Putin, who has been described as particularly concerned about being infected at the time, urged Mr. Trump to not publicly reveal the gesture because it could damage the American president politically. “I don’t want you to tell anybody because people will get mad at you, not me,” Mr. Putin reportedly told him.

The disclosures raise new questions about Mr. Trump’s relationship with Mr. Putin just weeks before an election that will determine whether the former president will reclaim the White House. A copy of the book was obtained by The New York Times. The Washington Post, where Mr. Woodward has worked for more than half a century, and CNN, where he often appears as a commentator, also reported on the book on Tuesday.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/08/us/politics/trump-putin-woodward-book.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Qk4.6a2E.BANp_swUqonw&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb

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Above 👆 is a Gift Link

[BoRaGard]

1. Working together to undermine American democracy

[Pachamama]

47. How is this legal or allowed? It's definitely an undermining of our Democracy and National Security

Maybe I am naive - but I was always under the belief that there is only one President at a time and that former Presidents, unless they are attending some official event and a world leader is there they happen to know, should not be having any communications in private, in person or by telephone etc post-Presidency. Maybe an exception for a retired world leader - ie Angela Merkel - but NOT a current world leader of another country. And absolutely not with an enemy state leader.

Trump is a national security risk and an enemy of the state. When he hosted Netanyahu and Urban at Mar A Lago recently I was disgusted and it’s not ok.

I hope the FBI was listening in…

[2naSalit]

2. Bet it was...

More times than that.

[onecaliberal]

3. I don't think it is a secret. It's why Biden won't allow him to get national security briefings.

[erronis]

4. This is just one of a million reasons trump should not have access to anything above comics.

Of course the national security team in the US likely used trump to send ivan lots of fake shit

[Old Okie]

11. Briefings

Incorrect; he has been offered briefings but has declined. Don't think he is interested in reading them if he cannot keep them.

[Justice matters.]

41. The convicted felon doesn't know how to read in order to understand what...

the words on the pages mean, so it's no wonder the traitor doesn't care about them if he can't keep them to sell them to his dictators in exchange for $$$$$$$ for himself or his rotten offspring.

[CrispyQ]

5. How long has Bob Woodward known about this?

Just like his interview where Trump said he knew the virus was deadly. How long after Trump said that did it take Woodward to get the interview out? I would have thought that was breaking news. ??? And this too. ???

[Ramsey Barner]

10. Far too many journalists withhold critical information so they can boost sales of an eventual book.

[wolfie001]

14. No doubt Haggie Haggerman knew every nuance and detail

She's planning for access I'm sure, and her editors at the NYTs know this as well. Billionaires have their reasons and resources to keep this sewage pipeline open at all costs. They have zero concern for freedom from christo-fascism.

I posted this at Reddit's political humor a while back. I'm on a 1 month ban for posting an anti-trump piece. This is an example of a compromised and once revered news source:

[IronLionZion]

6. And way too many Republicans are into it

Supporting America's enemy while thinking of themselves as patriots.

[LiberalArkie]

25. So very post "Business Plot" of 1933 and pre-Pearl Harbor of them. They never change.

Last edited Tue Oct 8, 2024, 12:40 PM - Edit history (1)

[Midnight Writer]

7. "I just can't quit you."

[Kid Berwyn]

8. I wonder what else Trump sent Putin?

And what did Putin give Trump in return?

[DENVERPOPS]

9. Okay

now talk about Jared.............He was obviously gathering intel for he and Trump's spawn's own personal income trail.........

The Damage goes far far beyond just OUR intel. They also shared other nation's intel.......Now, those nations won't be as good about sharing intel in the future with the U.S.

Of course, the epitome of being an asshole, and sharing critical intel was Dick Cheney. He intentionally outed a CIA operative, Valerie Plame in retaliation for her husband daring to defy his lies about IRAQ having Yellow Cake Uranium...I have to believe that within the first 24 hours, there were bodies dropping all over the world........Any person, who had done business or had contact with her cover, (which was an import/export business), would have been suspected......and probably would have been "disappeared".....

The Republicans are above caring about treasonous acts, or fear of ever being punished.

Another example was when Trump, with members of Team Six on his plane, was taking pictures, THAT SHOWED THEIR FACES, and forwarding the pictures to news agencies across America. Those Seal's careers were ended.....forever.......

[Gymbo]

32. Actually, it was Robert Novak who...

...leaked Plame's name. Also, Karl Rove is suspected of talking to news services four days before the leak was published. I believe that George W. Bush and Dick Cheney knew about what was going down and may have even engineered it, but there is no proof of that.

[DENVERPOPS]

37. Thank you Gymbo

Cheney/Rumsfeld were the ones that Plame's husband had blown out of the water by contradicting that their "Yellowcake being ready" was pure BS.....
So I can only imagine that at least those two instigated the retaliation, regardless of who did the actual deed.....But thx for your clarification of who actually disclosed the Top Secret Info......

[jaxexpat]

12. All in the spirit of strengthening the Earth's oligarchic domination

Trump's fondest wish is to be accepted in that club.

[EarnestPutz]

13. How about a campaign ad that says "Putin got our covid tests before you did".

[Harker]

15. "No puppet... no puppet... you're the puppet." n/t

[Mawspam2]

16. Fuck fucking Woodward.

Do your gd job. No book sales for you - ever!

[homegirl]

17. So Donald is

cheating on "little Kim" with voo va va voom Vladimir?

[MorbidButterflyTat]

20. Thanks for the laugh!

It reminds me of that funny picture of a guy walking with his girlfriend while checking out another girl walking by... someone substituted the faces with *rump, Putin, and that sheik guy.

It was so funny!

[FakeNoose]

45. Pootie was always his first love

Just sayin'



When are we going to lock that TRAITOR up and throw away the key?

[republianmushroom]

18. Treason ?

44 months and counting

[republianmushroom]

33. Seems to be to "POLITICAL" for this DOJ.

We shall see if it is to political for the next DOJ, or if it will be sweep under the rug, claiming, for the best interest of the nation, we forgive and forget. Time will tell.

[MorbidButterflyTat]

19. It's a secret?

[PedroXimenez]

21. burying the lead?

doesn't the covid test thing seem to be the biggest thing here?

[Drum]

23. True, that's a prominent part of the story, but DU guidelines necessitate I use the exact title of the article.

You are welcome to cite an excerpt y’self.

[PedroXimenez]

26. right i meant them not you!

[Drum]

28. ...

[moniss]

22. Of course as many of us here and elsewhere have said

all along. Is there truly great doubt about where some of the documents form those empty classified folders went?

[PatrickforB]

27. I'm sure this is being investigated now by DOJ and responsible (non-traitorous) members of Congress. n/t

[Wild blueberry]

30. Woodward downgraded from "journalist" to hack

Money from book sales override very relevant information he's been sitting on, again.

[samsingh]

31. he has to report into his boss

[TBF]

34. I'm sure John Roberts will find a way to call this "official business" nt

[Oopsie Daisy]

35. Trump is a Russian asset or spy. Putin is his handler.

For his treachery, Trump deserves the worst punishment possible.

[Pachamama]

46. Melania is his handler - not Putin

I would rather see her contacts

[orangecrush]

36. In other news

The sun rose in the East.

[Evolve Dammit]

38. Hello DOJ?? Come in dammit. TRAITOR stench

[Layzeebeaver]

39. Should have been titled "treason"

Just saying.

[Hassler]

40. Giving Vlad scarce resources. So much for Americans First

[chouchou]

42. With a nod to "The Coasters" ( Little Eygpt)

Step right up, folks and see Little Donnie.
Do his famous dance of the Russians!
He walks, he talks, he crawls on his belly like a reptile
Just one thin dime, one tenth of a dollar! He'll do all that for you!

[Farmer-Rick]

43. So good to know he took care of the Russian dictator

Before he took care of Americans during COVID.

Trump even tried to stop the testing of Americans for COVID because it showed how he allowed the disease to spread throughout the US. Republicans and their grandparents were dropping like flies, spreading COVID far and wide, denying COVID even existed while Trump and his pals were selling fake cures (drink bleach?????). All the while, Trump was sending Putin supplies for COVID.

Pure Evil

[mercuryblues]

44. Trying to figure out

why this does not surprise me.

[4catsmom]

48. Reason enough

to be charged with Treason

[Skittles]

51. "secretly"

[Blue Owl]

52. The useless Logan Act

[dweller]

53. Trump says

It’s all fake

So, there’s that




✌🏻

[LudwigPastorius]

54. My takeaway from the article was the new moniker for Trump, courtesy of Joe Biden:

Biden calls him “that fucking asshole,” Woodward writes.

TFA...I like it. It could also stand for "traitorous fucking asshole".

[Captain Zero]

55. DOES ANYONE think they have not talked about UKRAINE?

Seven conversations (that we know about).
If any of them have been since Trump was nominated and about Ukraine, then Trump is in VIOLATION OF THE LOGAN ACT!