Letter: Transparency needed in Russia relationship

Which would you rather have, 30,000 emails from Hillary Clinton’s personal server or a precise transcript from the meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin? The former was reviewed by the FBI, which found nothing worthy of criminal prosecution, while the details of the latter are known to only six people — two of whom lie every time they open their mouths, two of whom are duty-bound to support anything their bosses say, and two of whom (the translators) know their lives and careers would be endangered if they open their mouths before they die (of natural causes).

President Trump’s coziness with Putin might simply mean that Trump believes we can develop some sort of symbiotic relationship to benefit both us and them. More likely, Putin has knowledge of Trump’s business relationships, some legal and others either illegal or seriously compromising to America’s security interests, with Russian oligarchs and/or banks. These relationships would seriously impair Trump’s willingness to impose the measures needed to protect our elections or to impede Russia’s territorial expansion goals in eastern Europe.

Some fresh air is clearly needed to make Trump’s relationship to Russia more transparent, but there’s no indication we'll get that any time soon.

This story was originally published August 7, 2017 at 4:07 PM with the headline "Letter: Transparency needed in Russia relationship."