Biden calls Trump's pressure on Ukraine 'modern-day appeasement' in 1st post-presidential interview
LONDON (AP) — Joe Biden said in his first post-presidential interview that President Donald Trump's pressure on Ukraine to give up territory to Russia amounts to ' modern-day appeasement,' a historically fraught term that refers to a failed effort to stop the Nazis from annexing land in Europe in the 1930s.
Biden told BBC Radio 4s 'Today' program in remarks aired Wednesday that Trump's statements about acquiring Panama, Greenland and Canada have bred distrust in Europe.
He also said it was a 'difficult decision' to leave the U.S. presidential race in 2024 four months from Election Day to allow former Vice President Kamala Harris to challenge Trump. But, he added, making that move earlier as some critics had suggested 'would(n't) have mattered.'
The term appeasement refers to former British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's efforts in the 1930s to appease Adolf Hitler's moves to annex land in Europe, which failed to prevent World War II.
During his interview with BBC Radio 4's 'Today' program, Biden also said that Trump's statements about acquiring Panama, Greenland and Canada have bred distrust of the United States in Europe.
'What president ever talks like that?" Biden said. "That's not who we are. We're about freedom, democracy, opportunity — not about confiscation.'
Trump has long dismissed the war in Ukraine as a waste of lives and American taxpayer money. Early in his presidency, Trump ordered a pause in American aid to Ukraine — then resumed it. The two countries last week signed an agreement granting American access to Ukraine's vast mineral resources — a return on investment, Trump suggested, that could pave the way for more U.S. aid.
He has also said that Crimea, a strategic peninsula along the Black Sea in southern Ukraine that was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014, 'will stay with Russia.'
Biden said he worried that relations between the U.S. and Europe was eroding under Trump, with NATO member nations reconsidering whether they trust the U.S.
'Europe is going to lose confidence in the certainty of America and the leadership of America," Biden told the BBC. The continent's leaders, he added, were asking: "'Can I rely on the United States? Are they going to be there?''
Of special concern, Biden said, was the administration's proposal to let Russia keep some Ukrainian territory in an effort to strike a peace deal that would put an end to fighting.
'It is modern-day appeasement,' Biden said.
'I don't see anything that was triumphant,' he said.
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Election conspiracy theorist sticks by false 2020 claims in defamation trial
DENVER (AP) — One of the nation's most prominent election conspiracy theorists, MyPillow founder Mike Lindell, stuck by his false claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen while testifying Monday during a defamation trial over statements he made about a former official for a leading voting equipment company. Taking the stand for the first time during the trial, Lindell denied making any statements he knew to be false about Eric Coomer, the former product strategy and security director for Denver-based Dominion Voting Systems . Among other things, Lindell accused Coomer of being 'a part of the biggest crime this world has ever seen.' Lindell also distanced himself from a story told by a conservative podcaster who accused Coomer of helping to rig the 2020 election. It was discussed during a 2021 symposium Lindell hosted to discuss election fraud. Lindell said he did not know about the story before it was discussed onstage at the event and only learned about it during the trial. Coomer said his career and life have been destroyed by statements Lindell made about him and allowed to be promoted through his online media platform, Frankspeech. During sometimes rambling testimony in federal court in Denver, Lindell painted himself as the victim of 'lawfare' — when people are sued to scare them into silence. Several conservative news organizations, including Fox News, Newsmax and One America News , have settled defamation lawsuits from voting machine companies over allegations that they promoted falsehoods about the 2020 presidential election . In 2021, Newsmax also apologized to Coomer for airing false allegations against him. Nevertheless, Lindell said he hoped his trial would lead people to look at what happened in the election and get rid of electronic voting machines , which have been targeted in a web of conspiracy theories. Reviews , recounts and audits in the battleground states where Trump contested his 2020 loss all affirmed Democrat Joe Biden's victory . Trump's own attorney general at the time said there was no evidence of widespread fraud, and Trump and his allies lost dozens of court cases seeking to overturn the result. Lindell said he never accused Coomer of rigging the election, but he testified that Coomer's claims led Newsmax to block him from being able to go on air to talk about voting machines. 'You're part of the biggest coverup of the biggest crime the world has ever seen,' he said to the Coomer lawyer questioning him, Charles Cain. Lindell said he used to be worth about $60 million before he started speaking out about the 2020 election, and now he has nothing and is $10 million in debt. 'I believe what you did to me and MyPillow was criminal,' he said to Cain during questioning. Both Cain and U.S. District Judge Nina Wang had to remind Lindell several times to listen to the questions and only provide the answers to them, rather than head off on tangents. During the trial, Coomer's attorneys have tried to show how their client's life was devastated by the series of conspiracy theories about him. Lindell was comparatively late to seize on Coomer, not mentioning him until February 2021, well after his name had been circulated by other Trump partisans. Coomer said the conspiracy theories cost him his job, his mental health and the life he'd built and said Lindell's statements were the most distressing of all. He specifically pointed to a statement on May 9, 2021, when Lindell described what he believed Coomer had done as 'treason.' Asked by his attorney what he wants out of the trial, Coomer said he would like an apology, compensation and 'a chance of rehabilitating my public image.' Lindell's attorneys argued that Coomer's reputation was already in tatters by the time Lindell mentioned him — partly because of Coomer's own Facebook posts disparaging Trump, which the former Dominion employee acknowledged were 'hyperbolic' and had been a mistake. 'Your reputation was shattered long before Mr. Lindell said a word about you,' Chris Katchouroff said to Coomer. Katchouroff noted that Lindell also is known for making hyperbolic statements and that what he said about Coomer was simply the result of his sincere concern over vote-rigging in the 2020 presidential election — a claim for which there is no evidence. ___ Associated Press writer Nicholas Riccardi contributed to this report. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
