Pompeo Dismisses Suggestion Trump Cancelling Putin Meeting Had Anything to Do With Cohen: ‘Wholly Unfounded’

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo insisted to Wolf Blitzer today that President Donald Trump‘s decision to cancel his planned meeting with Vladimir Putin had nothing to do with the big Michael Cohen news.

Trump made the announcement mere hours after Cohen’s plea deal was announced, but he said in a statement on Twitter it was because of the Russia-Ukraine naval clash:

Based on the fact that the ships and sailors have not been returned to Ukraine from Russia, I have decided it would be best for all parties concerned to cancel my previously scheduled meeting….

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 29, 2018

….in Argentina with President Vladimir Putin. I look forward to a meaningful Summit again as soon as this situation is resolved!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 29, 2018

Blitzer noted to Pompeo that “the Russians have done other awful things and the President went ahead in Helsinki.” Pompeo said Trump made this decision to “tell the Russians return the sailors, return the Ukranian equipment, it is theirs, people need to be returned to their families––he wanted to send an unambiguous message that the Russians need to change that.”

Blitzer then asked if it had nothing to do with the Cohen news.

“Ludicrous,” the secretary of state responded. “Washington parlor game… This is the thing the American people need to understand about Washington, D.C. It makes stuff up. It is wholly unfounded. I was involved in the decision-making process… President Trump made the decision this was the right approach, based on the activity that had taken place in the lead-up to the G20 summit.”

Watch above, via CNN.

[image via screengrab]

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!