There’s plenty to chew on in Bob Woodward’s upcoming book, titled “War,” but the reporting about Donald Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin have sparked the most conversation.
To summarize, Woodward’s book alleges that the former Republican president, while in office, secretly sent Covid testing equipment to Putin at the height of the pandemic, even as people in his own country struggled to gain access to such resources. The book, citing a source close to Trump, also claims that the former president and the Russian leader have had direct conversations “as many as seven times” since he left the White House.
The GOP candidate, of course, has denied the allegations.
Nevertheless, Democrats clearly don’t want this to be a one-day story. Within hours of the reporting reaching the public, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at some length about the controversy in multiple interviews, and the Democrat’s team unveiled a hard-hitting television ad highlighting the allegations as the day came to end.
As for keeping the story alive, Republican Voters Against Trump, which is investing $15 million in campaign advertising, unveiled a new commercial focused specifically on the controversy.
When Americans were dying by the hundreds, Trump was busy sending Covid test kits to Putin.
— Republican Accountability (@AccountableGOP) October 9, 2024
Americans died while Trump was appeasing a dictator. This is unforgivable.
Watch our new ad: pic.twitter.com/OpVMmZY6he
Congressional Democrats, meanwhile, have raised legal concerns. NBC News reported that some in the party have suggested that Trump might very well have crossed a legal line.
Democrats have suggested that Trump may be in violation of the Logan Act, which prohibits private citizens from communicating with foreign leaders ‘with intent to influence the measures or conduct of any foreign government or of any officer or agent thereof, in relation to any disputes or controversies with the United States, or to defeat the measures of the United States.’
What’s more, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “We’re not aware of those calls,” referring to the alleged communications between the former president and his ally in Moscow.
Jean-Pierre added, “If true, it is concerning.”
As we’ve discussed, Trump has some familiarity with the Logan Act: In 2019, the then-president — who routinely tried to get the Justice Department to prosecute political figures he disliked — insisted that former Secretary of State John Kerry “should be prosecuted” for violating the Logan Act because of his interactions with Iranian officials.








