As Donald Trump’s allies double down on Trump’s failed foreign policy vision at the RNC convention today, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement: 

“Donald Trump spent four years weakening our national security, and he’s still hellbent on praising dictators, threatening to abandon our allies, and undermining American leadership on the world stage. No amount of spin from MAGA loyalists taking the RNC stage today changes the fact that Trump put our security and our allies last and allowed dictators to gain influence at the expense of Americans’ safety. 

“It’s no surprise that so many military leaders — including Trump’s own former chief of staff — have spoken out against his reckless record as commander in chief. Now, Trump has chosen a far-right MAGA running mate in JD Vance who shares his dangerous views, railing against NATO, pushing to abandon Ukraine, and threatening to undercut our national security. 

“As Trump doubles down on his foreign policy failures with Vance on the ticket, it’s clear that neither he nor Vance can be trusted to lead on the world stage.”

Donald Trump — who has repeatedly praised Putin — said he would have let Russia “take over” parts of Ukraine and threatened to let them “do whatever the hell they want” to our NATO allies.

CNN: “Trump says he would encourage Russia to ‘do whatever the hell they want’ to any NATO country that doesn’t pay enough”

Washington Post: “Former president Donald Trump has privately said he could end Russia’s war in Ukraine by pressuring Ukraine to give up some territory… Some foreign policy experts said Trump’s idea would reward Russian President Vladimir Putin and condone the violation of internationally recognized borders by force…

“Trump has consistently complimented Putin, expressed admiration for his dictatorial rule and gone out of his way to avoid criticizing him, most recently for the death in jail of political opponent Alexei Navalny.”

Daily Beast: “Fox News Edits Out Trump Saying He Might’ve Let Russia ‘Take Over’ Parts of Ukraine”

“[Trump] revealed how he personally would have prevented the war. According to Trump, all he needed to do was let Russia ‘take over’ parts of Ukraine.”

New York Times: “Mr. Trump often praises Mr. Putin — he has described the invasion of Ukraine as the work of a ‘genius’ — and has long admired him as a ‘strong’ leader.”

Washington Post, February 2022: “‘Genius,’ ‘Savvy’: Trump reacts to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine exactly as you’d expect”

Trump on Putin: “We had a very good relationship.” 

Donald Trump, March 2023: “I got along very well with Putin.”

ABC News: “Trump spent his latest rally in New Hampshire praising multiple authoritarian leaders and quoting Russian President Vladimir Putin to try and discredit the criminal indictments against him.”

Numerous military leaders and former Trump advisers – including those closest to him while he made reckless foreign policy decisions – have slammed him as a grave threat to our national security. Trump’s former chief of staff and retired Marine general John Kelly said Trump called veterans “suckers” and “losers” and has “no idea what America stands for,” and retired four-star Army General Barry McCaffrey slammed Trump’s failure to protect American interests from Russia.

Axios: “Former President Trump didn’t want to visit a cemetery near Paris for Americans who fought and died in World War I because it was filled with ‘suckers’ and ‘losers,’ John Kelly, his longest-serving chief of staff, said in a statement to CNN on Monday.”

The Atlantic: “Trump said, ‘Why should I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers.’ In a separate conversation on the same trip, Trump referred to the more than 1,800 marines who lost their lives at Belleau Wood as ‘suckers’ for getting killed.”

CNN: “‘A person that has no idea what America stands for and has no idea what America is all about. A person who cavalierly suggests that a selfless warrior who has served his country for 40 years in peacetime and war should lose his life for treason – in expectation that someone will take action. A person who admires autocrats and murderous dictators. A person that has nothing but contempt for our democratic institutions, our Constitution, and the rule of law. ‘There is nothing more that can be said,’ Kelly concluded. ‘God help us.’”

Politico: “President-elect Joe Biden should start receiving intelligence briefings, and the delay in allowing the transition to officially get started is damaging U.S. national security, President Donald Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly told POLITICO in an exclusive interview.”

CNN: “‘The depths of his dishonesty is just astounding to me. The dishonesty, the transactional nature of every relationship, though it’s more pathetic than anything else. He is the most flawed person I have ever met in my life,’ [John Kelly], the retired Marine general has told friends, CNN has learned.”

CNN: “[General Mark Milley] ‘was certain that Trump had gone into a serious mental decline in the aftermath of the election, with Trump now all but manic, screaming at officials and constructing his own alternate reality about endless election conspiracies.’”

The Hill: “A retired four-star Army general said that he believes that President Trump is a ‘serious threat to US national security.’ Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey tweeted Friday that he reached the conclusion about Trump because the president ‘is refusing to protect vital US interests from active Russian attacks.’ ‘It is apparent that he is for some unknown reason under the sway of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin,’ he added.”

CNN: “Retired Marine Gen. John Allen: Trump’s threats of military force may be ‘the beginning of the end of the American experiment’”

CNN: Former Trump Defense Secretary General James Mattis said Trump “has no moral compass” and was “dangerous” and “unfit” for office.”

Washington Post: Mattis resigned after Trump directed him “to do something that I thought went beyond stupid to felony stupid, strategically jeopardizing our place in the world and everything else.”

During his first term, Trump put dictators over our allies, ceded America’s leadership worldwide, and made the world less safe. 

Politico: “Trump’s approach is hurting the U.S., foreign policy experts say”

Associated Press: “Trump embracing US adversaries, pushing away its allies”

CNN: “Trump sides with Putin over US intelligence”

New York Times: “Much of the world has soured on American leadership since President Trump took office, a loss of faith that has opened up opportunities for other countries like China, Russia and Germany to assert themselves on the international stage, according to an extensive new survey of people living around the globe.”

Forbes: “Trump said of his relationships with dictators, ‘the tougher and meaner they are, the better I get along with them,’ which he insisted is ‘not a bad thing.’ 

“‘The easy ones,’ Trump said, referring to America’s allies, ‘I maybe don’t like as much or don’t get along with as much.’”

Now, Trump is promising in a second term to “finish the process” of abandoning and undermining NATO.

The Independent: “Trump refuses to commit to NATO in second term at Fox News town hall”

Trump: “We have to finish the process we began under my Administration of fundamentally reevaluating NATO’s purpose and NATO’s mission.”

Rolling Stone: “​​Trump Plots to Pull Out of NATO — If He Doesn’t Get His Way”

“Donald Trump wanted to pull the United States out of NATO during his first term, but was repeatedly talked out of it by senior administration officials. For a possible second term in the White House, [Trump] is already discussing how he could actually get it done, if his demands aren’t met by NATO.”

Politico: “Trump vowed he’d ‘never’ help Europe if it’s attacked, top EU official says”

JD Vance led the charge to block aid for Ukraine in the Senate, suggested ceding parts of Ukraine to Russia (just like Trump), and has railed against NATO.

NBC News: “Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, on Monday dismissed fears of Russia’s military capabilities under President Vladimir Putin and suggested Ukraine should give up some of its land to end the war.” 

Politico: “Trump’s VP pick spells ‘disaster’ for Europe and Ukraine”

“One senior EU official, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly on the issue, said in an interview Monday that the appointment of Vance was a ‘disaster’ for Ukraine — and by extension for the European Union, which has backed Kyiv as it defends itself against Russian aggression…

“Vance played a central role in the effort to kill off a Ukraine aid bill earlier this year in the Senate…

“Vance’s Trump-style, America-first foreign policy extends to more general critiques of Europe and NATO as well.”

Mediaite: “J.D. Vance Calls Depriving Ukraine of Aid His Second Biggest Priority in Senate”

Ohio Capital Journal: “Ohio senator J.D. Vance accused of playing Putin’s game”

The Hill: “Vance promoted Trump’s ‘America First’ foreign policy at the Munich Security Conference in February…”