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U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon) today introduced a resolution that would prohibit President Donald Trump from conducting unsupervised meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin or any other Russian official.
The resolution was prompted by Trump's infamous meeting with Putin in Helsinki last week, which concluded with a press conference where the U.S. president questioned whether he Kremlin had really interfered in his election victory. Trump then extended an invitation to meet with Putin again in Washington in the fall.
"President Trump made clear last week in Helsinki and since that Vladimir Putin has him wrapped around his finger," Merkley said in a statement. "We may not know exactly why Trump is so weak in the face of Putin's manipulations, but it's clear that they should not be in a room alone together. Our nation needs President Trump to act as a watchdog for America, not a lapdog for Putin."
Merkley's proposed resolution would require a senior U.S. official to be present during Trump's one-on-one meetings with Putin. It comes a week after Merkley's statement in a televised interview that the pee tape is probably real.