Trump’s deference to Putin back under harsh scrutiny after Russian bounty reports

President Trump’s deference to Vladimir Putin is back under the microscope amid accusations that he ignored intelligence that Russia offered to pay Taliban militants to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan. “Nothing in the briefing that we have just received led me to believe it is a hoax.” Trump tweeted two days earlier that reports of Russian bounties could be “another fabricated Russia Hoax” and claimed that intelligence officials “did not find this info credible, and therefore did not report it to me.” The president has said nothing critical of Moscow or indicated that he would take new steps to protect troops serving in Afghanistan, where he’s focused on withdrawing U.S. forces after nearly two decades of conflict. Joe Biden, the former vice president and Trump’s presumptive Democratic opponent in this year’s election, said it was “a dereliction of duty” if Trump refused to read his intelligence report or failed to take action if he was briefed on the issue. “I find it inexplicable in light of these very public allegations that the president hasn’t come before the country and assured the American people that he will get to the bottom of whether Russians are putting a bounty on the heads of American troops, and that he will do everything in his power to make sure that we protect American troops,” said Rep. Adam B. Schiff, chair of the House Intelligence Committee. Robert O’Brien, Trump’s national security advisor, said late Monday night that officials who leak classified information “betray the trust of the people of the United States.” He also claimed that the allegations regarding Russian bounties “have not been verified or substantiated,” and Trump “had not been briefed on the items.” Officials appear to be drawing a distinction between a verbal briefing and inclusion in the president’s daily brief.