President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign called former President Donald Trump’s threats against the NATO alliance and his friendliness toward Russian President Vladimir Putin “un-American” and “dangerous” in a new ad released Friday, hours after Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny reportedly died in prison.
Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a Get Out The ... [+]
Highlighting Trump’s comments on Saturday that he would “encourage [Russia] to do whatever the hell they want” to NATO countries that don’t meet defense spending targets, the ad’s narrator declares “no president has ever said anything like it,” calling the comments “shameful…weak” and “un-American.”
The ad was released amid the fallout from Navalny’s alleged death, reported Friday by Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service, and as world leaders warned they would blame Putin if Navalny’s death is confirmed.
The Biden-Harris ad also emphasized the importance of the NATO alliance, calling it “the cornerstone of America’s security,” attributing it to the winning of the Cold War and reminding viewers that 9/11 is the only time NATO has invoked Article 5, which declares any attack on a NATO country is an attack on its allies.
Russian authorities reported Friday Navalny died after feeling ill and losing consciousness following a walk, but did not explain the cause of his death. His chief of staff Leonid Volkov said his office has been unable to confirm Navalny’s death, while his wife and mother cast doubt about his death, with his wife noting he was “alive, healthy and happy” earlier this week. Navalny was serving multiple prison sentences for various charges, including extremism and contempt of court. Biden in 2021 warned that Russia would face “devastating” consequences if Navalny died in prison, while Vice President Kamala Harris, speaking Friday at the Munich Security Conference, said that if Navalny’s death is confirmed, it “would be a further sign of Putin’s brutality.”
Trump on Wednesday doubled down on the controversial remarks he made about NATO over the weekend, writing on Truth Social “could somebody please inform our uninformable President that NATO has to pay their bills” and alleging that European countries are “paying a small fraction of what we are for the Disaster in Ukraine.” NATO guidelines specify that members should spend 2% of their GDP in order to maintain their standing in the alliance. Trump’s comments drew sharp criticism from world leaders, including Biden, who said he has “set a dangerous, and shockingly, frankly un-American signal to the world.”
Biden re-upped his call on Friday for the House to take up the $95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan that passed the Senate earlier this week. “Our bipartisan national security bill would allow Ukraine to keep defending itself against Putin’s vicious onslaught,” Biden tweeted. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has said the House won’t pass the bill without additional border security measures.