New York Times: Humiliation in Helsinki

Donald Trump, who boasts about his strength and tough negotiating skills, groveled before Russian President Vladimir Putin during a summit in Helsinki. The meeting prompted consternation at home and abroad as well as questions about the president's patriotism and common sense. “Rather than defend the United States against those who would threaten it, he attacked his own citizens and institutions,” writes Mark Landler for the New York Times. “Rather than challenge Mr. Putin, an adversary with a well-documented record of wrongdoing against the United States, he praised him without reservation.” After the summit, Trump suggested that he accepted Putin’s word over that of US intelligence agencies about Russian interference in the 2016 US election. The president blamed a US investigation into that interference for polarizing the country, suggesting that the matter does not require investigation. Trump’s nervous meekness ignited concerns about whether Russia could have compromising material. “So disorienting was Mr. Trump’s performance that at times, it fell to Mr. Putin to try to cushion the blow – as if he recognized the damage that the president’s remarks would cause in the United States,” Landler notes. History will record the summit as a low point for the presidency and the country. – YaleGlobal