Praise of Putin by Donald Trump presents a puzzle to voters about his reasoning.
Recent suspicion that Putin is somehow aiding the candidate, perhaps by hacking the Democratic National Committee emails, provides an explanation, simplistic though it may seem.
Decades ago, Republican Sen. Joseph McCarthy conducted congressional hearings that punished anyone with even a fleeting connection to Russia during its agonizing experiment with communism. So fervent was the sentiment that the hearings came dangerously close to dismantling American freedoms and values that to this day we remember it as a cautionary tale.
Republican voters still feel the same about Russia, as expressed by Speaker Paul Ryan, and would not argue that Russia has traded communism for despotism and has become an ever greater threat today.
So what can Trump imagine his voters might think, as he panders to Putin? The simple answer is that Trump always forgets what he is doing in the interest of the two things he is dependably consistent about — his insatiable desire for money and his relentless need for attention.
These two primary concerns can render any other task or intent insignificant for him in an instant. It’s no surprise that Putin called him a genius and is willing to promote his candidacy because the return on such a small investment would be a bonanza, should the candidate be elected. Trump’s vulnerabilities make him a pawn to anyone who understands him. If voters put Trump’s finger on the nuclear button, whose fingers will be on Donald’s buttons?
All you have to do is see that it is already happening.
Lorraine Desrosiers
Hadley