Thread by @VABVOX

In September 2016, @KellyannePolls told Trump he couldn't get elected if he kept claiming @POTUS44 was born in Kenya--as he had 67x on Twitter over 6yrs. So Trump gave a press conference saying he believed Obama was born in the US, gave no explanation, took no questions.

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Trump has since walked that back.

Remember at the Inaugural luncheon where he paid tribute to @HillaryClinton and all she has done for America and asked those in attendance to applaud her?

Trump soon walked that back as well & has directed his DOJ to investigate her again.
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Everyone knows Trump lies, that he has always lied and that he believes his own lies.

Trump lied repeatedly at the #HelsinkiSummit presser. He also told his truth--that Russia didn't attack our 2016 election.There is videotape of the live broadcast which the whole world saw.
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Two American journalists, @jeffmason1 and @JonLemire asked bold (and brave) questions and referenced Trump's own tweets.

Trump was clear: He sided with #Russia over the US IC. It was not one garbled double negative as he claimed this afternoon now that the world has spoken.
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Moreover, Trump began his remarks and ended them attacking the FBI, the DNC, his perpetual nemesis #HillaryClinton, referenced the #PeterStrzokHearing and his last twords at the presser were #WitchHunt.

There were myriad statements from all sides denouncing Trump's actions.

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This was not one flubbed line from Trump. What's more, he began his presidency attacking the US IC, then blamed the press for his own words.

Remember his speech at the CIA?

It is always someone else's fault when Trump makes an egregious error as he did at #HelsinkiSummit.

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Trump did this after #Charlottesville. He has done this time and again when his desperate need to be liked supersedes his need to keep his own narrative in play.

Most days Trump rails against the #FakeNews, claiming we in the press lie about him.

We never do.
Ever.
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At #TrumpPutinSummit, Trump blamed "obstructionist Democrats" for the investigation into #Russia's attack on us.

It's a bipartisan investigation reaffirmed yesterday by Republican #DanCoats who heads @ODNIgov. Coats directly contradicted Trump's Helsinki comments.

Directly.

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Trump did not address what #Putin has said since the #HelsinkiSummit.

A meeting which Russian foreign minister Lavrov called "super!" and great for #Putin and Russia.

Putin crowed to RT and Sputnik that he got everything from Trump and gave nothing.

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#Putin told Russian media that Trump caved to his wishes and even discussed ways Putin could circumvent restrictions based on Putin's attempts to annex #Ukraine.

This is not one garbled sentence. This is a trajectory in which Trump acceded to Putin's will repeatedly.

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In a detailed column on what Trump did in #Helsinki, Michael Gerson noted the lead-in to the #TrumpPutinSummit and the myriad ways in which Trump has embraced #Putin's narrative over America's IC investigations.

It's an ugly explication of siding with Putin over the US.

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In an interview last year, when asked about #Putin's killing of journalists, Trump famously declared the US has done bad things, too.

Trump has never once challenged or castigated Putin. Black athletes are "sons of bitches," but not Putin--the man who attacked our nation.

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What many Americans fail to acknowlege is the attack on our free and fair election was no different from the attack on 9/11.

Bloodless coups are the future.

#Putin undermined our democratic system. He admitted that at #Helsinki--boldly. And Trump said nothing.

Nothing.

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If Trump were asked tomorrow if he believes #Putin attacked our election & stole it, he'd deny it just as he did at #HelsinkiSummit.

Trump said he "ran a brilliant campaign." #Putin laughed.

But that campaign manager (& foreign agent) #PaulManafort sits in prison.

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We can do as Trump's followers do: cry #WitchHunt. Or we can believe what we saw at #HelsinkiSummit: Trump believes #Putin, Trump has always believed Putin and for Trump to truly believe the US IC, he would have to accept his own illegitimacy.

And that Trump will never do.

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The #GOP should have fallen all over themselves today to put up bills codifying the role #Russia played in the 2016 election so that there is an historical record for Republicans that they are not the party of #collusion.

They did not.

Tweets are not congressional records.

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#JohnBrennan called Trump's actions in #Helsinki treasonous. I wrote that they were grounds for #impeachment and that they must be addressed by @SpeakerRyan.

But #GOP has postured for the cameras and done nothing of substance.

America needs checks and balances on Trump.

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This country has hovered over a #ConstitutionalCrisis since the night Trump fired #SallyYates a week after the Inauguration.

What will it take for Republicans to choose country over party?

#Helsinki should have been a Waterloo. If it is not, we have a long road to November.
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What Trump says changes day by day.

Former press secretary #SeanSpicer often said, "The tweet speaks for itself"when asked questions he didn't want to answer.

These tweets of Trump's contravene & vitiate his walk back of #Helsinki.

He blames everyone BUT #Putin & #Russia
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Even as Trump claimed he "misspoke" once--just once-- and read from prepared notes, he crossed out bringing those responsible to justice and wrote in "THERE WAS NO COLLUSION."

Trump said in this mea culpa that "it could have been other people, also."

He just can't stop.

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