There's bipartisan agreement that Trump's Germany comments were a big mistake

Former Secretary of State John Kerry hasn't held his tongue when it comes to criticizing President Trump. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) has kept quiet, if he has criticism at all.

But both of these political veterans had sharp words for the president after he said that Germany is "totally controlled by Russia" at a Wednesday breakfast meeting during this week's NATO summit in Brussels. When asked if he agreed that Germany is "captive to Russia," as Trump said Wednesday, Hatch told reporters that the president "can be a little too critical of the other [NATO] counterparts, and I don't think he should be critical." Hatch added that he has met German Chancellor Angela Merkel and has "the highest opinion of her," Politico reports.

Kerry, who served as America's chief diplomat under former President Barack Obama, opted to completely tear Trump apart in a statement he shared on Twitter. In it, Kerry savages Trump's remarks as "strange," "counterproductive," "disgraceful," and "destructive," among a slew of other insults. "The president set America back this morning," Kerry wrote. "He is steadily destroying our reputation in the word." Read his full statement below. Kathryn Krawczyk

The Week

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