Francis Wilkinson, Columnist

Trump Is Testing Putin’s Campaign Strategy

How far will Russia go to save a sinking investment?

July 1, 2020 at 1:00 PM UTC

Francis Wilkinson is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering US politics and policy. Previously, he was executive editor for the Week and a writer for Rolling Stone.

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So here we are again, back where this presidency began: Trump and Russia. Russia and Trump.

News that Russian President Vladimir Putin was paying bounties for killing U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan, and that President Donald Trump was briefed about it and took no action, is the latest shocking/unsurprising twist in a long and sordid saga. Some day, perhaps, the American people will learn why Trump is so subservient to Putin. Meanwhile, another important question is how far Putin is willing to go to help Trump get re-elected.