Trump Meets Putin in Helsinki — Sides with Russia Over US Intelligence (2018-07-16)

At a joint press conference with Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Trump publicly sides with Russia over his own intelligence agencies, saying there is 'no reason' to believe Russia interfered in the 2016 election. He calls the US investigation a 'disaster for our country.' The performance is universally condemned by both Republican and Democratic leaders. Trump later claims he 'misspoke' and accepts the intelligence community's assessment — a claim he immediately contradicts in subsequent statements.