So while everyone was having a well-justified jaw drop Wednesday over Donald Trump’s suggestion that it would be super cool if Russia would maybe hack Hillary Clinton’s email (latest spin: He was only kidding! Don’t you people have a sense of humor?), which was pretty outrageous, our media watchdogs sort of overlooked a probably more outrageous thing — in terms of actual policy — Trump said at the same presser: Hey, maybe we should recognize Russia’s annexation of Crimea, which it stole fair and square from Ukraine. And drop the sanctions on Russia the U.S. and Europe imposed over that invasion, because there are deals to be done.
Just to review what you snoozed through in European History/The News real quick: Crimea used to be part of Russia for centuries... But then the Soviet Union fell apart, and a favorite vacation spot for Russians (also home to many ethnic Russians) was suddenly part of an independent Ukraine, which Moscow was displeased with. When Ukraine’s government stopped being quite so pro-Russian in 2014, Russia sent in troops to “protect” the Russians in Crimea, and eventually the territory voted — in an election recognized pretty much only by Russia — to rejoin Russia.
. Here’s what [Trump] said in Wednesday’s presser from Bizarro World:
QUESTION: I would like to know if you became president, would you recognize (inaudible) Crimea as Russian territory? And also if the U.S. would lift sanctions that are (inaudible)?
TRUMP: We’ll be looking at that. Yeah, we’ll be looking.
Read more at http://wonkette.com/604860/donald-t...keep-crimea-you-earned-it#lt4ZqhJkui7KH1cd.99
Just to review what you snoozed through in European History/The News real quick: Crimea used to be part of Russia for centuries... But then the Soviet Union fell apart, and a favorite vacation spot for Russians (also home to many ethnic Russians) was suddenly part of an independent Ukraine, which Moscow was displeased with. When Ukraine’s government stopped being quite so pro-Russian in 2014, Russia sent in troops to “protect” the Russians in Crimea, and eventually the territory voted — in an election recognized pretty much only by Russia — to rejoin Russia.
. Here’s what [Trump] said in Wednesday’s presser from Bizarro World:
QUESTION: I would like to know if you became president, would you recognize (inaudible) Crimea as Russian territory? And also if the U.S. would lift sanctions that are (inaudible)?
TRUMP: We’ll be looking at that. Yeah, we’ll be looking.
Read more at http://wonkette.com/604860/donald-t...keep-crimea-you-earned-it#lt4ZqhJkui7KH1cd.99
