Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is suggesting Russian President Vladimir Putin has leverage over the 45th president.
During an appearance on MSNBC’s “Inside with Jen Psaki” Monday, Pelosi addressed former President Donald Trump’s statement in response to the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Nalvany.
“You wonder, what does Putin have on Donald Trump that he always has to be beholden to him, his buddy in vileness?” the California Democrat asked.
She went on to blast Trump’s statement as “beneath the dignity of a human being.”
“It is so horrible you think, ‘No, somebody must have made this up. Not even Donald Trump could go this far,” Pelosi insisted.
She added, “This statement should disqualify him from running for anything, much less President of the United States.”
Watch the video below:
You wonder what does Putin have on Trump that the disgraced defeated former president always has to be beholden to him, his buddy in vileness.
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) February 20, 2024
And the statement that Trump made after Putin assassinated Navalny — it's beneath the dignity of a human being. -NP pic.twitter.com/xsIewlxAH7
Russia’s Federal Prison Service said in a statement on Friday, “On February 16, 2024, in penal colony No. 3, convict A.A. Navalny felt unwell after a walk, almost immediately losing consciousness.”
“The facility’s medical workers immediately arrived at the scene and an emergency medical team was called in. All necessary resuscitation measures have been carried out, but they did not yield positive results. Emergency medics confirmed the death of the convict,” it added.
However, NBC News notes there was “no immediate information about what exactly caused Navalny’s death.”
NBC News also notes Navalny “was poisoned with a military nerve agent while on a business trip in Russia in 2020 — an attempt on his life that he blamed directly on Putin — and spent his final years behind bars as the Russian leader reshaped the country to rally behind his war in Ukraine.”
In a post on Truth Social on Monday, Trump said, “The sudden death of Alexei Navalny has made me more and more aware of what is happening in our Country.”
“It is a slow, steady progression, with CROOKED, Radical Left Politicians, Prosecutors, and Judges leading us down a path to destruction. Open Borders, Rigged Elections, and Grossly Unfair Courtroom Decisions are DESTROYING AMERICA,” he added.
