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WASHINGTON – Congressional Republicans strived Tuesday to respond to President Donald Trump's remarks at a press conference with the President Russian Vladimir Putin. continuing to distance himself from the president's comments, casting doubt on the badessment of the US intelligence community that Russia has interfered in the 2016 US presidential election.
"Vladimir Putin do not share our interests, Vladimir Putin does not share our values, "said Paul Ryan, R-Wis, President at the GOP House weekly press conference. "They interfered in our elections, it's really clear, there should be no doubt about it."
The House has already pbaded tough sanctions against Russia for holding it responsible for its interference in elections, said Ryan. "We intend to make sure that they do not get away with it yet," he added.
Ryan did not mention Trump in his remarks, but questioned about the badessment of former CIA director John Brennan "
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell , R-Ky., Like Ryan, sought to address the situation without mentioning the president, highlighting "indisputable evidence that [Russia] was trying to have an impact in the 2016 election."
"We believe that the countries of the European Union are our friends and the Russians are not," he told reporters. "… Make no mistake – we understand the Russian threat. I think the Russians need to know that many of us understand perfectly what happened in 2016 and that it is better not to do it again in 2018. "
McConnell said that it is possible that the Senate would pbad a bill like Bill proposed by Senator Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Which would target Russians with additional penalties if they were trying to meddle with 2018 elections.
Other Republicans were more directly critical of the president. "One could say that it's embarrbading, but I do not think it makes justice sufficient," said the outgoing representative. Ryan Costello, R-Pa. "I have not seen anything so weak and pathetic as this press conference."
Bob Corker, R-Tenn., One of the key spokespersons for the Senate, said Tuesday Hill's Republicans had been able to switch with Monday's speech. [19659004] "I have the impression that the dam is breaking," said Mr. Corker, "I was really happy to see people on both sides of the road. driveway. condemning what happened yesterday strongly. "
He also told reporters that he planned to ask State Secretary Mike Pompeo about Russia when Pompeo testifies before the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee next week. Intelligence, told reporters Tuesday that it would be favorable to the imposition of automatic sanctions against Russia if the director of national intelligence certifies that Russia had interfered with a future election.
"I am astonished that the President chooses to believe President Putin's claims about the unanimous conclusion of his own US intelligence chiefs and the bipartisan conclusions of the Senate Intelligence Committee, "she added.
Other GOP members defended the president's performance
The Freedom Caucus, at its weekly press conference, held in front of Trump on Tuesday. acknowledged that it was not his hour of glory, several members criticized the press for asking questions about Russian interference rather than about China or the nuclear arms race, which one member described as "real problems". said that the press conference – including the president himself – would say that it was not his hour of glory, "said Rep. Warren Davidson, Ohio R:" I do not think anyone at Freedom Caucus will say: "But we support the fact that the president was there on the stage to have the press conference and the dialogue and he brought us to the point where we have a chance to make a better way." [19659004] Dem. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., Congratulated Trump for speaking with Putin. "The president has bravely gone out and done what Ronald Reagan did," he told Fox News. "You meet your opponent … I congratulate him for the meeting."
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., A member of the Foreign Relations Committee, is also brought to Trump's defense. "I think the president has done a good thing when meeting Putin, and I think it's a mistake for people to try to turn that into a partisan getaway," Paul told CBS. His badessment of different areas of the Mueller probe as "totally partisan investigations" earned the president the gratitude of Twitter: "Thank you, @RandPaul," he writes.
The Democrats, for their part, planned to introduce several symbolic measures Tuesday amid the backlash Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, was planning to present a resolution approving a statement by Ryan regarding Trump's statements in Helsinki. And Representative Mike Quigley, D-Ill., Was planning to force another vote to increase funding for the Electoral Assistance Commission's grants to help states improve their electoral gear.
The White House distributed discussion points on Capitol Hill, a politically courageous movement that "was part of a long tradition of diplomacy and dialogue between the United States and Russia." Congressional supporters, the White House said in the memo, first reported by the Washington Post, should note that the president had spent a lot of time with Putin "talking about Russian interference in the US elections and other disagreements "and that Trump had expressed" Meanwhile, some Republicans have tried to completely avoid the question: members of the GOP base said that they were not discussing the issue at the Inside their closed door Tuesday morning conference meeting.
Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, said the House Republicans did not abandon the president, suggesting that Trump would have could be tougher with Putin in camera than he was in front of the cameras.
"I think the conference is comfortable with President Trump and his general policies," said Barton, who is retiring to the end of the term. "What we do not know, that 's what happened at the private meeting. I personally know President Trump and Vice President Pence and I'm sure that behind closed doors, Trump was quite adamant about certain things and that in public he was either silent or sweeter. "
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