The right-leaning Wall Street Journal editorial board said Donald Trump’s remarks during this week’s presidential forum on military issues showed him to be both “reassuring and scary.”
The paper took particular exception with the Republican nominee’s effusive praise for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“Mr. Trump seems to think Mr. Putin doesn’t respect the U.S. because he doesn’t respect [President] Obama,” the Journal said Thursday night. “That’s no doubt true but Mr. Putin’s real problem is that America is an obstacle to his goal of reviving Russia as a great power that dominates Eastern Europe. Riffs like this make Mr. Trump sound like a bigger patsy than Mr. Obama.”
During the forum, Trump said he was happy to take compliments from Putin, who has cracked down on human rights in Russia, and said Putin is a stronger leader than Obama.
The Journal said, however, that in a prepared speech earlier in the day, Trump offered sound policy proposals on increasing military spending and pressuring U.S. allies to do the same.
