President Donald Trump’s combative interview with ABC News that aired late Tuesday stayed the course when the MAGA leader was pressed on whether he thought Russian President Vladimir Putin wants peace.
The contentious segment featured Trump and interviewer Terry Moran talking about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
As Trump tried to insist that Putin is “willing to stop the fighting,” Moran immediately interjected.
“You think he wants peace? You think Vladimir Putin wants peace?” Moran pressed.
Trump affirmed he believes Putin wants peace, too.
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“Still?” Moran pressed again. “Even with the raining missiles on [Ukraine]?”
Trump doubled down, asserting that Putin’s dream was to take over the entire country.
“Because of me, he’s not going to do that,” said Trump.
When Moran asked whether Trump trusted Putin, Trump quipped, “I don’t trust you.” He then launched into an attack on Moran and took issue with his aggressive line of questioning.
“I don’t trust a lot of people. I don’t trust you. Look at you, you’re coming in all shooting for bear. You’re so happy to do the interview and then you start hitting me with fake questions. You start telling me that a guy whose hand is covered with a tattoo doesn’t have a tattoo. You’re being dishonest.”
As Moran fired back, “No I’m not,” Trump continued, saying he distrusts many people — but that doesn’t include Putin.
“I think that — let’s say he respects me. And I believe because of me he’s not going to take over the whole — but his decision, his choice, would be to take over all of Ukraine,” the president said.