Trump says it would be a ‘smart thing’ if he spoke to Putin, though he won’t confirm he has

Associated Press

CHICAGO (AP) — Former President Donald Trump is refusing to say whether he’s spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin since Trump left the White House. But if the two did speak, Trump said on Tuesday, it would be “a smart thing.” The Republican presidential candidate was pressed on his communication with the Russian president during a wide-ranging — and sometimes contentious — interview at the Economic Club of Chicago. Journalist Bob Woodward reports in his new book that Trump had as many as seven private phone calls with Putin since leaving office and secretly sent the Russian president COVID-19 test machines during the height of the pandemic. On Tuesday, Trump said he wouldn’t comment. “But,” he said, “I will tell you that if I did, it’s a smart thing.”