{"id":111968,"date":"2024-10-09T00:45:56","date_gmt":"2024-10-08T17:45:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=111968"},"modified":"2024-10-09T00:45:56","modified_gmt":"2024-10-08T17:45:56","slug":"trump-secretly-gave-putin-covid-test-machines-bob-woodward-book-says-donald-trump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=111968","title":{"rendered":"Trump secretly gave Putin Covid test machines, Bob Woodward book says | Donald Trump"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\r\n     data-ad-layout-key=\"-fb+5w+4e-db+86\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"7910942971\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Donald Trump secretly sent Covid-19 testing machines to Vladimir Putin in the early stages of the pandemic when such resources were in short supply, the veteran reporter Bob Woodward reveals in an eagerly awaited <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/War-Bob-Woodward\/dp\/166805227X\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">new book<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"0cea40d2-3772-4df1-b205-bb903425a117\" data-spacefinder-role=\"richLink\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement\" class=\" dcr-1your1i\"><gu-island name=\"RichLinkComponent\" priority=\"feature\" deferuntil=\"idle\" props=\"{&quot;richLinkIndex&quot;:1,&quot;element&quot;:{&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement&quot;,&quot;prefix&quot;:&quot;Related: &quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Trump took \u2018British naval secrets\u2019 to Mar-a-Lago, says Christopher Steele&quot;,&quot;elementId&quot;:&quot;0cea40d2-3772-4df1-b205-bb903425a117&quot;,&quot;role&quot;:&quot;richLink&quot;,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2024\/oct\/08\/trump-christopher-steele-book&quot;},&quot;ajaxUrl&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/api.nextgen.guardianapps.co.uk&quot;,&quot;format&quot;:{&quot;display&quot;:0,&quot;theme&quot;:0,&quot;design&quot;:0}}\"\/><\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">According to Woodward, Trump \u201csecretly sent Putin a bunch of Abbott Point of Care Covid test machines for his personal use\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">In response, the Russian president told his US counterpart: \u201cI don\u2019t want you to tell anybody because people will get mad at you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Remarkably, Woodward also reports that the relationship between the two men, hugely controversial during Trump\u2019s first presidential campaign and subsequent four years in the White House, has continued since Trump has been out of power, through as many as seven private calls.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">The revelations were among many published by US outlets on Tuesday, among them dramatic scenes of Joe Biden warning Putin not to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine and new reporting about how Biden was this summer convinced to step aside as the Democratic nominee for president, clearing the way for the vice-president, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/kamala-harris\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Kamala Harris<\/a>, to challenge Trump in November.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Now 81 \u2013 the same age as Biden \u2013 Woodward has been a Washington institution since the 1970s, when his work with Carl Bernstein on the Watergate scandal led to Richard Nixon\u2019s resignation as president. Following three scoop-filled books on Trump\u2019s presidency \u2013 Fear, Rage and Peril, the last co-written with Robert Costa \u2013 Woodward\u2019s new book, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/War-Bob-Woodward\/dp\/166805227X\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">War<\/a>, considers key events under Biden including the Russian war in Ukraine, Israel\u2019s war against Hamas, and political battles at home. It will be published next week.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Excerpts were released by Woodward\u2019s two employers, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2024\/10\/08\/bob-woodward-new-book-war-trump-putin-biden\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">the Washington Post<\/a> and<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2024\/10\/08\/politics\/bob-woodward-book-war-joe-biden-putin-netanyahu-trump\/index.html\" data-link-name=\"in body link\"> CNN<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Though the US and Russia did share medical equipment <a href=\"https:\/\/ru.usembassy.gov\/delivery-of-u-s-ventilators-to-russia\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">such as ventilators<\/a> in the early stages of the pandemic, Trump\u2019s decision to send Putin Covid testing machines would probably have proved hugely controversial if known.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Apparently recognizing this, Putin reportedly told Trump: \u201cPlease don\u2019t tell anybody you sent these to me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Trump said: \u201cI don\u2019t care. Fine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Putin was said to have replied: \u201cNo, no. I don\u2019t want you to tell anybody because people will get mad at you, not me. They don\u2019t care about me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Trump lost the White House later in 2020 but, remarkably, Woodward says calls between the two men have continued. Earlier this year, Woodward writes, Trump ordered an aide to leave his office at Mar-a-Lago in Florida, so he could hold a private call with Putin.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Worries persist about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2024\/oct\/08\/trump-christopher-steele-book\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Putin\u2019s influence on Trump<\/a>. Robert Mueller, the former FBI director who investigated links between Trump and Moscow around the 2016 election, concluding that Putin sought to help Trump defeat Hillary Clinton, recently <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2024\/sep\/18\/russia-election-interference-robert-mueller\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">said<\/a> Russia would interfere again this year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">According to the Post, Woodward reports that Jason Miller, a close Trump adviser, responded hesitantly when asked about Trump and Putin\u2019s continuing calls.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">\u201cUm, ah, not that, ah, not that I\u2019m aware of,\u201d Miller reportedly said, adding: \u201cI have not heard that they\u2019re talking, so I\u2019d push back on that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Woodward adds that Avril Haines, Biden\u2019s director of national intelligence, \u201ccarefully hedged\u201d, saying: \u201cI would not purport to be aware of all contacts with Putin. I wouldn\u2019t purport to speak to what President Trump may or may not have done.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">On Tuesday, Steven Cheung, Trump\u2019s communications director, said: \u201cNone of these made-up stories by Bob Woodward are true and are the work of a truly demented and deranged man \u2026 clearly upset because President Trump is successfully suing him because of the unauthorized publishing of recordings he made previously.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">That lawsuit concerns tapes of calls that Woodward <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/books\/2022\/nov\/19\/bob-woodward-donald-trump-tapes\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">released<\/a> in 2022 and over which Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/media\/2023\/jan\/31\/donald-trump-sues-bob-woodward-over-the-trump-tapes-for-50m\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">sued<\/a> the following year. Woodward has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/bob-woodward-seeks-end-donald-trumps-lawsuit-over-audiobook-2023-09-12\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">sought<\/a> to have the suit dismissed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Drama around Woodward\u2019s new book comes less than a month from the 5 November presidential election, when Trump could be returned to office. According <a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2024\/10\/08\/blinken-biden-drop-out-bob-woodward\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">to Axios<\/a>, which cited sources who had seen Woodward\u2019s book, Woodward describes a 4 July White House lunch at which Antony Blinken, Biden\u2019s secretary of state, discussed with the president whether he should withdraw, given concerns about his age and fitness.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Three weeks later, Biden withdrew, a historic decision that has placed a spotlight on Trump\u2019s own age, 78, and mental state. In Woodward\u2019s judgment, according to the Post, \u201cTrump was the most reckless and impulsive president in American history and is demonstrating the very same character as a presidential candidate in 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">And yet Trump and Harris remain locked in a tight race, notwithstanding Trump\u2019s two impeachments, one for inciting the deadly January 6 attack on Congress; his conviction on 34 criminal charges concerning hush-money payments; his other ongoing criminal cases, over election subversion and retention of classified information; multimillion-dollar civil penalties in cases including a defamation suit arising from a rape claim a judge deemed \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2023\/aug\/07\/donald-trump-rape-language-e-jean-carroll\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">substantially true<\/a>\u201d; and proliferating other scandals.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Elsewhere, Woodward\u2019s book reportedly captures Biden\u2019s candid responses to foreign policy challenges.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">The president is reportedly depicted calling Benjamin Netanyahu, the rightwing Israeli prime minister who has resisted US attempts to secure a ceasefire with Hamas, \u201cThat son of a bitch\u201d and \u201ca bad fucking guy!\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">\u201cThat fucking Putin,\u201d Biden reportedly said about the Russian president. \u201cPutin is evil. We are dealing with the epitome of evil.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Russian aggression against Ukraine began when Barack Obama was US president. According to Woodward, Biden believes the man under whom he was vice-president between 2009 and 2017 \u201cnever took Putin seriously\u201d \u2013 a point of view familiar from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/books\/2022\/sep\/24\/the-long-alliance-review-biden-obama-imperfect-union-debenedetti\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">reports of tensions<\/a> between the two men.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">\u201cThey fucked up in 2014\u201d when Russia invaded Crimea, Biden told a friend, according to Woodward. \u201cThat\u2019s why we are here. We fucked it up. Barack never took Putin seriously. We did nothing. We gave Putin a license to continue! Well, I\u2019m revoking his fucking license!\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">According to CNN, Woodward reports that in October 2021, US intelligence including material from a precious human source inside the Kremlin \u201cconclusively\u201d showed that Putin planned to invade <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/ukraine\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Ukraine<\/a>. Biden reportedly told Bill Burns, the CIA director: \u201cJesus Christ! Now I\u2019ve got to deal with Russia swallowing Ukraine?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">According to Woodward, Biden confronted Putin twice that December, on a video conference and then a \u201chot 50-minute call\u201d in which Putin \u201craised the risk of nuclear war in a threatening way\u201d and Biden told him \u201cit\u2019s impossible to win\u201d such a conflict.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Woodward also reports an October 2022 conversation between Lloyd Austin, the US secretary of defense, and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Shoigu, about possible use of nuclear weapons.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">\u201cIf you did this, all the restraints that we have been operating under in Ukraine would be reconsidered,\u201d Austin reportedly said. \u201cThis would isolate Russia on the world stage to a degree you Russians cannot fully appreciate.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Shoigu said: \u201cI don\u2019t take kindly to being threatened.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Austin said: \u201cMr Minister, I am the leader of the most powerful military in the history of the world. I don\u2019t make threats.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">In another call two days later, Woodward reports, Shoigu claimed Ukraine was planning to use a \u201cdirty bomb\u201d, a claim the US deemed false but meant to justify a Russian nuclear strike.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">\u201cWe don\u2019t believe you,\u201d Austin reportedly said. \u201cWe don\u2019t see any indications of this, and the world will see through this. Don\u2019t do it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">\u201cI understand,\u201d Shoigu replied.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Colin Kahl, a senior Pentagon official, tells Woodward: \u201cIt was probably the most hair-raising moment of the whole war.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Woodward also reports that the US struggled to convince <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/volodymyr-zelenskiy\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Volodymyr Zelenskyy<\/a>, the president of Ukraine, that Russia would actually invade. At the Munich Security Conference in February 2022, Harris reportedly told Zelenskyy to \u201cstart thinking about things like having a succession plan in place \u2026 if you are captured or killed or cannot govern\u201d, then left Germany thinking she might not see Zelenskyy again.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1eu361v\">Russia invaded that month. Two and a half years later, the war drags on, Zelenskyy defiant in Kyiv. Democrats, however, warn that given Trump\u2019s close ties to Putin, a second Trump presidency would have dire consequences for Ukraine and its allies.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\r\n     data-ad-layout-key=\"-fb+5w+4e-db+86\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"7910942971\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1660802\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2024\/oct\/08\/trump-putin-covid-test-machines-bob-woodward\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Donald Trump secretly sent Covid-19 testing machines to Vladimir Putin in the early stages of the pandemic when such resources were in short supply, the veteran reporter Bob Woodward reveals &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=111968\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8629],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-111968","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-u-s","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111968","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=111968"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111968\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=111968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=111968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=111968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}