Working for Donald Trump is voluntary. With the exception of those military people who have been pressed into White House roles with limited options, everyone who has taken an office in Trump’s White House has done so knowing who they were serving and the agenda he supports. And yet even the most dedicated Trump fan might be forgiven for not quite getting that Trump was just going to keep putting his tiny hand on that red hot burner.
President Donald Trump’s persistent overtures toward Russia are placing him increasingly at odds with his national security and foreign policy advisers, who have long urged a more cautious approach to dealing with the foreign adversary.
Most people, when advised that something is an issue and likely to generate problems, might think twice before engaging in a behavior a second time. But Donald Trump is a Putin addict.
Some top aides, including National Security Adviser Gen. H.R. McMaster, have been warning that Putin is not to be trusted. An intelligence officer-turned-politician, Putin is known for steering discussions in his own favor.
That addiction doesn’t just make Trump incapable of shaking off his need to go running back Putin, In fact, it seems to reinforce his tendency to throw off any restraints, ignoring even the recommendations of the Russian team in securing meetings.
The White House did not respond to questions about Trump’s refusal to have a note taker for his meeting with Putin, or about whether McMaster communicated his concerns to the president.
The uneasy dynamic between the president and top aides has been exacerbated by the revelation this week of an extended dinner conversation between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at the recent summit in Germany. The previously undisclosed conversation, which occurred a few hours after their official bilateral meeting, raised red flags with advisers already concerned by the president’s tendency to shun protocol and press ahead with outreach toward Russia, according to two U.S. officials and three top foreign officials.
Trump’s refusal to abide by the rules is like a toddler testing his bounds. Except that a toddler doesn’t hold the economic, environmental, and military fate of millions in his (equally sized) fingers.
White House officials said the public may never know what was discussed between Putin and Trump over dinner. But advisers past and present said that characterizing any conversation with Putin as casual would be a mistake.
“There are no meaningless conversations between presidents,” said Jeffrey Edmonds, the NSC’s former Russia director.
Even as Trump is gushing over his good relation with Putin, he’s actively attacking his attorney general, getting in extra digs at the already fired FBI Director, and making threats against the Special Counsel. And Trump’s willingness to go against advice and do the one thing everyone is saying he can’t do, is the best indicator that Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller might not remain in that position for much longer.