Ex-CIA Director: 'No Doubt' Putin Views Trump as 'Unwitting Agent'

http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/ex-cia-director-no-doubt-putin-views-trump-unwitting-agent-n624786

by Christina Coleburn
Aug. 8, 2016

Former CIA Acting Director Michael Morell on Sunday doubled down on the connection he made between Republican nominee Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Morell told ABC's "This Week" that he had "no doubt" Putin viewed Trump as an "unwitting agent" of Russia, and noted that as a trained KGB intelligence operative, Putin had manipulated people "much smarter than Donald Trump."

"He played this perfectly, right? He saw that Donald Trump wanted to be complimented. He complimented him. That led Donald Trump to then compliment Vladimir Putin and to defend Vladimir Putin's actions in a number of places around the world. And Donald Trump didn't even understand, right, that Putin was playing him," Morell said.

"So in Putin's mind, I have no doubt that Putin thinks he's an unwitting agent of the Russian Federation, although Putin would never say that."

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The editorial also delineated the reasons why Morell chose to publicly back Clinton for president. He lauded the former secretary of state's "commitment to our nation's security" and maintained that he "never saw her bring politics into the Situation Room."

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