10 things you need to know today: July 18, 2018

Trump says he misspoke when he appeared to side with Putin, Obama criticizes "strongman" politics in rebuke of Trump, and more

President Trump clarifies his statements about Russian meddling
(Image credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

1. Trump says he misspoke after Putin summit

After facing bipartisan criticism, President Trump said Tuesday that he misspoke on Monday when he appeared to side with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the question of whether Moscow tried to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. After his summit with Putin in Helsinki, Finland, Trump said, "I don't see any reason why it would be" Russia that hacked Democrats during the campaign. Trump said he should have said he didn't see why it "wouldn't" be Russia, "sort of a double negative." Trump said he accepts the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia tried to meddle in the election. "So you can put that in," he said, "and I think that probably clarifies things." Democrats called Trump's statement a transparent and weak bit of damage control.

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.