Day 204: Trump Thanks Putin for Expelling Hundreds of American Diplomats From Russia

Americans vital to diplomacy and intelligence-gathering in a far-off corner of the world are being sent home and Trump is not only unconcerned, he’s thankful.

Trump “greatly appreciates” Putin ousting 755 staff members from the American embassy in Russia, which represents more than half of the embassy staff. (Putin also ordered the seizure of two American diplomatic properties in Russia.) Putin’s actions are the result of Congress imposing economic sanctions on Russia due to election meddling in 2016.

To be clear: Trump’s rhetoric is not normal. Take former U.S. ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul’s word for it.

First of all, the removal of the diplomats doesn’t fire them and get them off the payroll. Government employees are not at-will employees and therefore they can only be fired for cause. Putin sending hundreds home doesn’t fire them, it just causes them to be reassigned, possibly in positions outside their area of expertise.

Second, this represents yet another example of Trump trying to cut vital government jobs for no discernible reason. The government is currently operating at extraordinary narrow levels of staffing in key areas, with crucial positions remaining unfilled. These include jobs such as the U.S. ambassadorship to South Korea, numerous high-ranking State Department positions, deputy secretaries and general counsels.

Finally, and most importantly, why can’t Trump say a single negative thing about or to Putin? It’s moments like these — coupled with obvious things like the Russia hacking investigation and the lack of released tax returns by Trump — that concern many Americans about not only conflicts of interest and collusion between Trump and Russia, but the idea that Trump is actually being blackmailed by Putin.

Putin engages in an outwardly antagonistic, Cold War-esque act toward the U.S. and Trump thanks him for it. The clip doesn’t lie: Trump wasn’t doing it in a sarcastic, we-have-the-upper-hand way either, but in a legitimate, non-joking manner.

This is why the rest of the world does not take Trump seriously and many people see him as an ineffectual weakling. He’ll randomly threaten to obliterate North Korea with nuclear weapons one day and then kiss Putin’s shoes for a hostile the next.

204 days in, 1258 to go

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