International

Woodward Book Alleges Trump Sent Covid-19 Tests To Putin In Secret Deal

Published

2 months ago

Oct 9, 2024.

Dennis

A new book by veteran Watergate reporter Bob Woodward claims that Donald Trump secretly sent Covid-19 testing machines to Russian President Vladimir Putin for personal use during a period when they were in short supply, a claim fiercely denied by Trump’s campaign.

The book, titled War, also alleges that Trump has maintained secret contact with Putin since leaving office, according to excerpts reported by U.S. media.

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In response, the Trump campaign dismissed the claims as entirely false. “President Trump gave him absolutely no access for this trash book that either belongs in the bargain bin of the fiction section of a discount bookstore or used as toilet tissue,” said campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung in a statement to the BBC.

The book, set to be released next week, attributes the ongoing communication between Trump and Putin to a single unnamed aide. One anecdote cited by The New York Times claims that a Trump aide was asked to leave the former president’s office at Mar-a-Lago so Trump could speak with Putin privately. According to this aide, Trump and Putin may have spoken around half a dozen times since Trump left office in 2021. The book does not specify what they discussed, and a Trump campaign official cast doubt on the supposed contact.

While the BBC has not yet reviewed the book, The New York Times reports that Woodward himself was unable to corroborate the aide’s claim and found no other sources aware of these alleged communications.

Woodward, who gained fame for his role in exposing the Watergate scandal that led to Richard Nixon’s resignation, has written several bestselling books based on high-level insider accounts.

In War, Woodward writes that during Trump’s presidency, he “secretly sent Putin a number of Abbott Point of Care Covid test machines for his personal use.” The book recounts that Putin was worried about contracting the virus and asked Trump to keep the gift a secret, fearing it could harm Trump’s reputation. “I don’t want you to tell anybody because people will get mad at you, not me,” Putin allegedly told Trump. Trump reportedly replied, “I don’t care. Fine.”

These revelations come just weeks ahead of the November 5 election, reigniting questions about Trump’s relationship with Putin. Trump has previously been accused of colluding with Russia during U.S. elections, though a Department of Justice investigation found no conclusive evidence of this and made no determination on whether Trump obstructed the inquiry.

The book also covers Trump’s influence on foreign conflicts and the deeply polarized U.S. political climate. According to The Washington Post, it includes candid reflections from President Joe Biden, who reportedly regretted appointing Merrick Garland as attorney general, particularly in light of the prosecution of his son, Hunter Biden, led by a special prosecutor appointed by Garland. “Should never have picked Garland,” Biden reportedly told an associate.

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