President Trump is ramping up his denials about Russia having any hand in the 2016 election as well as his claims that there is some sort of conspiracy, or "witch hunt," against him. Last June, Trump tweeted about how there was "no collusion" or collusion specifically between the Russians and the Democrats five different times. By this spring, such tweets were in the double-digits:
Tweets about 'no collusion'June 2017: 5January 2018: 3February 2018 : 8March 2018: 6April 2018: 9May 2018: 13June 1-28, 2018: 11 times, including three times today alone
There is a similar pattern when you trace Trump's use of the word "witch hunt," CNN's David P. Gelles noticed:
The same is also true for mentions of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating links between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin, Politico's Kyle Cheney shared:
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.
Ahead of the announcement that he would be meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin next month, Trump tweeted Thursday: "Russia continues to say they had nothing to do with meddling in our election! Where is the DNC server, and why didn't Shady James Comey and the now disgraced FBI agents take and closely examine it? Why isn't Hillary/Russia being looked at? So many questions, so much corruption!"
CBS News' Mark Knoller offered the shorter version: "Pres repeats Kremlin denial, but charges FBI with corruption."
-
Who is fuelling the flames of antisemitism in Australia?Today’s Big Question Deadly Bondi Beach attack the result of ‘permissive environment’ where warning signs were ‘too often left unchecked’
-
Bulgaria is the latest government to fall amid mass protestsThe Explainer The country’s prime minister resigned as part of the fallout
-
Sudoku hard: December 15, 2025The daily hard sudoku puzzle from The Week
-
Senate votes down ACA subsidies, GOP alternativeSpeed Read The Senate rejected the extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits, guaranteeing a steep rise in health care costs for millions of Americans
-
Abrego García freed from jail on judge’s orderSpeed Read The wrongfully deported man has been released from an ICE detention center
-
Indiana Senate rejects Trump’s gerrymander pushSpeed Read The proposed gerrymander would have likely flipped the state’s two Democratic-held US House seats
-
Democrat files to impeach RFK Jr.Speed Read Rep. Haley Stevens filed articles of impeachment against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
-
$1M ‘Trump Gold Card’ goes live amid travel rule furorSpeed Read The new gold card visa offers an expedited path to citizenship in exchange for $1 million
-
US seizes oil tanker off VenezuelaSpeed Read The seizure was a significant escalation in the pressure campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro
-
Judge orders release of Ghislaine Maxwell recordsSpeed Read The grand jury records from the 2019 prosecution of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein will be made public
-
Miami elects first Democratic mayor in 28 yearsSpeed Read Eileen Higgins, Miami’s first woman mayor, focused on affordability and Trump’s immigration crackdown in her campaign
