Democratic senators on Monday ripped President Trump for his remarks during a joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin, in which he refused to condemn Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
“That was disturbing,” Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) tweeted after the Helsinki press conference. “Shameful. Jaw-dropping. Disgraceful. I am running out of words to describe how despicable it is to see an American President capitulate to a dictator.”
Trump on Monday said he doesn’t “see any reason why it would be” Russia who hacked Democratic servers in 2016.
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He also blamed special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election meddling for keeping the U.S. and the Kremlin “separated,” adding that there “was no collusion at all.”
Democrats have slammed Trump for his behavior at last week’s NATO summit in Brussels, where he publicly criticized member nations for what he considered insufficient defense spending, and for his criticisms of British Prime Minister Theresa May when he visited England.
GOP lawmakers also criticized Trump’s refusal to blame Russia for interfering in the 2016 presidential election, but Democrats held nothing back as they called Trump treasonous, shameful and a disgrace.
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) said the president’s behavior should “alarm us all.”
“Putin is a threat to our democracy and our upcoming election, that’s a fact,” Nelson tweeted. “The president’s unwillingness to stand up to him and defend our nation is unacceptable and embarrassing.”
Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) called the press conference a “complete disgrace,” while Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) called Trump’s repeated denials “insane.”
“It’s insane that the President of the United States is attacking the FBI and believes Putin over his own intelligence officials and evidence presented by both the House and the Senate,” Van Hollen tweeted.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who is considered a 2020 presidential contender, tweeted that Trump took “to the international stage to embarrass America, undermine our institutions, weaken our alliances, & embrace a dictator.”
Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) said in a statement that “America’s relationship with Russia is at its lowest point since the Cold War because Russia is not behaving like a responsible world power.”
He said Trump missed the opportunity to publicly condemn Russia for its military aggression in Ukraine and Putin’s support for Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad.
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said Trump’s European trip has been “one giant middle finger from President Trump to his own country.”
“Just jraw dropping,” Murphy said.