WATCH: CNN’s Christiane Amanpour corners NATO secretary on Trump military pledge: ‘I want a clear answer’
On day two of President Donald Trump’s meeting with NATO in Brussels, the President claimed that America’s European allies have agreed to a sharp increase in military spending.
On CNN Thursday, reporter Christiane Amanpour tried to pin down what that means from NATO secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg.
“We agreed we need to spend more. There’s a new sense of urgency into investing more in our defense,” Stoltenberg said.
Amanpour tried to get the exact number.
“First and foremost, has President Trump secured a pledge from NATO allies to begin spending more. Have the allies agreed specifically to figures demanded by the President today?” she asked.
“The allies have heard his message loud and clear,” Stoltenberg said.
“For me this is a good summit.”
“I want a clear answer. Macron denies that the allies agreed to spending beyond 2%. We need to know the facts,” Amanpour demanded to know.
“There’s a new sense of urgency,” Stoltenberg parried.
They then moved on to President Trump’s accusation that Germany is beholden to Russia because they get there energy needs from Russian companies.
“There are very strong views and positions,” Stoltenberg said.
“It’s not for NATO to decide on gas pipelines.”
“For us dialogue is not a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength,” he concluded, without telling Amanpour the percent NATO allies have agreed to increase spending.
Watch:
On CNN Saturday, anchor Victor Blackwell examined President Donald Trump's promises from 2016 — and compared them to his record.
"At campaign rallies across the country, supporters of the president have held these signs: 'Promises Made, Promises Kept," said Blackwell. "So this morning, we're looking at the promises that the president delivered on and the ones that he has not."
"Let's take you back to October 22, 2016," said Blackwell. "Candidate Trump released his Contract with the American Voter, outlined 100-day action plan to, quote, 'restore honesty, accountability and bring change to Washington,' closed quote. 28 promises. Of those 28, nine have been fulfilled. And we're talking renegotiating NAFTA agreement, withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, selecting a replacement for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia."
CNN
Republicans are praying Trump won’t ‘sabotage’ himself — and drag them down with him: CNN analyst
On Saturday, CNN analyst Alex Burns described how Republicans have given up on trying to get President Donald Trump to stay on message, and are just hoping he doesn't actively work against them.
"So do we know anything about what is happening behind the scenes, his speechwriters, people, is there anybody trying to change the narrative for him and maybe he's just not listening?" asked anchor Christi Paul. "Because I think it is hard for people to understand the kind of support he has behind the scenes."
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2020 Election
Trump’s ‘attempted purge’ of late ballots could screw over military voters: CNN’s John Avlon
CNN's John Avlon on Friday explained how President Donald Trump's attempts to stop late-arriving ballots from being counted could screw over the same military voters who largely backed him four years ago.
During one of his "Reality Check" segments, Avlon cited the president's recent remarks about how he hoped the Supreme Court would cut off counting ballots on the day after election day.
"Hopefully, the few states remaining that want to take a lot of time after November 3rd to count ballots, that won't be allowed by the various courts," the president said this week.
Avlon, however, argued that this could backfire on the president.
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