Russian Meddling: Trump Turns Obama’s Words Against Him

President Trump on Tuesday cited a quote from his predecessor as proof that Democrats are using Russia’s interference in the 2016 election as an excuse for losing.

“There is no serious person out there who would suggest somehow that you could even rig America’s elections, in part because they are so decentralized and the number of votes involved… So I’d invite Mr. Trump to stop whining and make his case to get votes,” said Obama in 2016 during a press conference with former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. 

Obama’s words came at a time when he “thought Crooked Hillary was going to win and he didn’t want to ‘rock the boat,'” tweeted Trump. “When I easily won the Electoral College, the whole game changed and the Russian excuse became the narrative of the Dems.”

Last week, Special Counsel Robert Mueller indicted 13 Russian officials and 3 Russian companies for a plot to “sow discord” in US politics, including the 2016 election. 

The indictment makes it clear there is no proof that any Americans knowingly cooperated in the Russian plot, nor is there proof that Russia’s efforts affected the outcome of the election. Furthermore, the indictment suggests the Russian scheme began in 2014, long before Trump announced his presidential bid. 

Trump has been criticized for downplaying the allegations against Russia and believing Putin when he told Trump that Moscow did not interfere in the election. He has “repeatedly hailed” Mueller’s indictment as “vindication of his claims that the election outcome was not affected and that collusion was a false narrative,” reports Fox News. 

“I have been much tougher on Russia than Obama, just look at the facts. Total Fake News!” Trump tweeted Tuesday morning as part of series of tweets slamming Obama for his failure to address claims of Russian meddling. “Obama was President up to, and beyond, the 2016 election. So why didn’t he do something about Russian meddling?”

In a rare occurrence, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) agreed with Trump’s criticism of Obama. The Obama Administration “should have done more” to address the intelligence community’s concerns about Russian meddling, Schiff said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.” 

Trump has recently referred to Schiff as “Liddle Adam Schiff” and “the leakin’ monster of no control.”

Schiff responded to the insults last weekend by asking, “If McMaster can stand up to Putin, why can’t you?” The jab references National Security Adviser HR McMaster’s recent comment that Russia’s interference in the election is “incontrovertible.”