INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump on Wednesday [7-18-18] continued to defend his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a day after walking back his remarks in which he would not endorse US intelligence findings on Russian election meddling over Putin’s denial. ‘So many people at the higher ends of intelligence loved my press conference performance in Helsinki,’ Trump tweeted Wednesday morning…The tweet was part of a stream of messages Trump issued on Wednesday morning as he defended his meeting with the Russian autocrat. Trump was fiercely criticized for his comments in Helsinki on Monday [7-16-18], and several top congressional Republicans and conservative media commentators condemned his remarks. On Tuesday [7-17-18], Trump attempted to clean up the controversy when he said he had misspoken during the news conference and affirmed that he has ‘full faith and support for America’s intelligence agencies.'”
–Veronica Stracqualursi, “Trump keeps up defense of Helsinki performance,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, July 18, 2018 8:59 am