CNN reports:

President Donald Trump has an Achilles’ heel when it comes to Russia.

Over the years, he’s made no secret that he has a soft spot for the country and its authoritarian leader, President Vladimir Putin. Trump has proved that he is willing to reject widely held US foreign policy views and align himself with the Kremlin on everything from Russian interference in US elections to the war in Syria.

Trump’s ties to Russians were so concerning that the FBI believed there was good reason to investigate potential collusion between his 2016 campaign and the Kremlin. Counterintelligence investigators also examined whether Trump himself was somehow a Russian asset. (Special counsel Robert Mueller did not establish a criminal conspiracy of collusion.)

In Trump’s eyes, these allegations are proof of a conspiracy against him by Democratic lawmakers and other “deep state” enemies in the US government. He bombastically declared last year, “There’s never been a president as tough on Russia as I have been.”

But that claim is simply false, based on Trump’s actions over the last few years. Here’s a full breakdown of 25 occasions when Trump was soft on Russia or gave Putin a boost. [Continue reading…]