Trump's short-lived cyber security deal with Putin: The best tweets, jokes and memes
Social media reacts to US President's plan to fight hackers with his Russian counterpart
Donald Trump appears to have backed away from his announcement that he might form an "impenetrable" cyber security unit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On Saturday night, the US President tweeted that he had come up with the plan after meeting his Moscow counterpart on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Hamburg last week.
Twelve hours later, however, he seemed to have lost faith in the idea.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Twitter reacted with various shades of horror and hilarity. Many found analogies for why they felt the plan might not be the most sensible idea:
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said he thought it was pretty close to the dumbest idea he had ever heard:
Fellow GOP politician John McCain, a frequent critic of Trump, joked how Putin had the right credentials for the job:
Actor Isiah Whitlock Jr felt he had the perfect meme to respond to the news:
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Another also seemed to sum up the popular mood:
One tweeter felt this cartoon got to the heart of the matter:
WikiLeaks suggested Trump could put Julian Assange in charge, given he had all the CIA's best secrets:
Not everyone saw the funny side, however. Beau Willimon, the creator of the US version of House of Cards, called for a march on Washington if the pact ever came to pass:
-
All roads to Ukraine-Russia peace run through the DonbasIN THE SPOTLIGHT Volodymyr Zelenskyy is floating a major concession on one of the thorniest issues in the complex negotiations between Ukraine and Russia
-
Hong Kong court convicts democracy advocate LaiSpeed Read Former Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai was convicted in a landmark national security trial
-
How Bulgaria’s government fell amid mass protestsThe Explainer The country’s prime minister resigned as part of the fallout
-
Pakistan: Trump’s ‘favourite field marshal’ takes chargeIn the Spotlight Asim Munir’s control over all three branches of Pakistan’s military gives him ‘sweeping powers’ – and almost unlimited freedom to use them
-
Is Europe finally taking the war to Russia?Today's Big Question As Moscow’s drone buzzes and cyberattacks increase, European leaders are taking a more openly aggressive stance
-
Pushing for peace: is Trump appeasing Moscow?In Depth European leaders succeeded in bringing themselves in from the cold and softening Moscow’s terms, but Kyiv still faces an unenviable choice
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison


