This is how a real U.S. President deals with Vladimir Putin
What a contrast there is between President Biden and The Former Guy. We’ve seen it in President Biden’s competence and compassion in addressing the coronavirus pandemic he inherited, and in the expedited rollout of COVID vaccines. The new President is a caring, empathetic person who wants to get help to Americans who need it most.
This was clear from the resolve Biden showed in pushing through the American Rescue Plan Act, and in implementing a key provision by swiftly distributing relief payments to Americans. This President didn’t hold them up so his signature could be affixed to the checks, as The Former Guy insisted on doing.
And the difference is not just in compassion or competence. President Biden shows toughness when it is appropriate. Just look at the difference in how Trump and Biden responded when asked on TV about Russian President Vladimir Putin being a killer.
When Bill O’Reilly, in a 2017 pre-Super Bowl interview, flatly said “Putin is a killer,” Trump infamously replied, “There are a lot of killers. We have a lot of killers. Well, you think our country is so innocent?”
This was no mere slip of the tongue. In 2015, Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough said that Putin “kills journalists that don’t agree with him.” Trump responded, “Well, I think that our country does plenty of killing, too, Joe.” Is that really putting America First??
Look at how weak Trump’s response sounds, compared to the straightforward, no-nonsense answer President Biden gave when ABC news anchor George Stephanopoulos asked him if he believed Putin is a killer. “Mm-hmm, I do,” President Biden said. There it is. No equivocation. No both sides-ism. No waffling. No false equivalence, dissembling, or attempt justification. It is refreshing to have a President who does not quake in fear of offending Putin.
