On Sunday’s broadcast of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” anchor Chuck Todd asked Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) if he was “at all concerned” that he was “duped” by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Kennedy said, “I think both Russia and Ukraine meddled in the 2016 election. I think it’s been well documented in the Financial Times and Politico and the Economist and the Washington Examiner and now on CBS that the prime minister of Ukraine, the interior minister, the Ukrainian ambassador to the United States, the head of the Ukrainian anti-corruption league, all meddled in the election on social media and otherwise. They worked with the DNC operative against the president.”
He added, “In fact, in December of 2018, a Ukrainian court ruled that Ukrainian officials had violated Ukrainian law by meddling in our election, and that was reported in The New York Times.
Kennedy continued, “Russia was very aggressive, and they’re much more sophisticated, but the fact that Russia was so aggressive does not exclude the fact that President Poroshenko actively worked for Secretary Clinton. Now, if I’m wrong—
Todd said, “Come on, you realize, the only other person selling this argument outside the United States is this man, Vladimir Putin? This is what he said on November 20th, ‘Thank God nobody is accusing us any more of interfering in U.S. elections. We will let them sort this out among themselves.’ you accused a former president of Ukraine. You’ve done exactly what the Russian operation is trying to get American politicians to do. Are you at all concerned that you have been duped?”
Kennedy said, “No, because you just read the articles. Do you believe the Economist magazine is a reputable journal? It’s been around I think since 1843. They’re not conservatives.”
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN