Biden tears into Trump for pushing the 'Russian narrative that America doesn't know what it's doing'
Before Vice President Joe Biden's time in office comes to a close, he's squeezing in some last words about President-elect Donald Trump. In an hour-long interview with reporters Thursday, Biden made it clear he does not approve of Trump's response to the unverified dossier making the rounds. "The one thing you never want to invoke is Nazi Germany, no matter what the circumstances," Biden said, referring to Trump's tweet Wednesday morning criticizing reports regarding the salacious information Russia allegedly has on him. "It's an overwhelming diversion from the point you're trying to make."
Perhaps even more concerning than Trump's seemingly offhanded tweets, Biden suggested, is his public criticism of U.S. intelligence agencies, which Biden called "one of the crown jewels of our national defense." "It plays into, particularly now, the Russian narrative that America doesn't know what it's doing," Biden said.
He noted that, overall, he's been "very impressed with the quality of intelligence we have gotten," and indicated that at least one person in Trump's administration has been "very receptive" to his advice. "[Vice President-elect] Mike [Pence] is significantly more informed about Russian conduct, potential intentions, and Putin's behavior than the president-elect is, based on what the president-elect says," Biden said.
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.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Rothermere’s Telegraph takeover: ‘a right-leaning media powerhouse’Talking Point Deal gives Daily Mail and General Trust more than 50% of circulation in the UK newspaper market
-
The US-Saudi relationship: too big to fail?Talking Point With the Saudis investing $1 trillion into the US, and Trump granting them ‘major non-Nato ally’ status, for now the two countries need each other
-
Crossword: November 30, 2025The daily crossword from The Week
-
Judge halts Trump’s DC Guard deploymentSpeed Read The Trump administration has ‘infringed upon the District’s right to govern itself,’ the judge ruled
-
Trump accuses Democrats of sedition meriting ‘death’Speed Read The president called for Democratic lawmakers to be arrested for urging the military to refuse illegal orders
-
Court strikes down Texas GOP gerrymanderSpeed Read The Texas congressional map ordered by Trump is likely an illegal racial gerrymander, the court ruled
-
Trump defends Saudi prince, shrugs off Khashoggi murderSpeed Read The president rebuked an ABC News reporter for asking Mohammed bin Salman about the death of a Washington Post journalist at the Saudi Consulate in 2018
-
Congress passes bill to force release of Epstein filesSpeed Read The Justice Department will release all files from its Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking investigation
-
Trump says he will sell F-35 jets to Saudi ArabiaSpeed Read The president plans to make several deals with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman this week
-
Judge blasts ‘profound’ errors in Comey caseSpeed Read ‘Government misconduct’ may necessitate dismissing the charges against the former FBI director altogether
-
Ecuador rejects push to allow US military basesSpeed Read Voters rejected a repeal of a constitutional ban on US and other foreign military bases in the country