WASHINGTON – A day before meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Donald Trump on Thursday again refused to blame Russia for election meddling designed to put him in the White House – a conclusion that U.S. intelligence agencies made public in January. “We assess Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an influence campaign in 2016 aimed at the U.S. presidential election. We further assess Putin and the Russian government developed a clear preference for President-elect Trump,” the report said. Those meetings begin Thursday in Hamburg, Germany, where Trump is also scheduled to have his first one-on-one meeting with Putin. Trump avoided public speeches during his first trip to Europe, where he is deeply unpopular.

Source: Huffington Post July 06, 2017 13:41 UTC