Donald Trump claims that during a private fundraiser last year, he threatened Russian President Vladimir Putin that if he attacked Ukraine, Moscow would be bombed in response. This is clear from an audio recording provided to “CNN“, BGNES agency reported.
“I told Putin: “If you go into Ukraine, I will bomb Moscow to the hilt. I'm telling you, I have no choice”, Trump says during a 2024 fundraiser, according to the audio recording. “And then (Putin) said, “I don't believe you”. But he believed me 10%.”
Trump later claimed to have given a similar warning to Chinese President Xi Jinping about a potential invasion of Taiwan, telling him that the US would bomb Beijing in response.
“He thought I was crazy,” the US president said of Xi, before noting that “we never had a problem”.
The remarks, which the Republican made in support of his bid for a second term, were among those captured on a series of audio recordings from 2024 fundraisers. in New York and Florida, which were later obtained by Josh Dawsey, Tyler Pager and Isaac Arnsdorf, who detailed some of the conversations in their new book “2024”. The audio recordings have not been previously broadcast. The Trump campaign declined to comment on the content of the recordings.
The audiotape shows a more libertarian side of Trump that he has been willing to show behind closed doors to woo wealthy donors - talking not only about his sometimes aggressive foreign policy strategy but also about deporting protesting students and his belief that "people on welfare" will always vote for Democrats.
The US leader referred to his conversations with Putin and Xi while claiming that he would have prevented the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza if he had been president instead of Joe Biden - a claim he continues to repeat as he now struggles to end both wars.
On July 8, Trump again expressed his frustration with Putin's resistance to a peace deal, complaining that the Russian leader talks "a lot of crap" to the United States.
“I'm not happy with Putin“, Trump said during a cabinet meeting. “I'm very unhappy with them.“
At one fundraiser, he boasted that he had pressured wealthy allies to donate tens of millions of dollars to his campaign. At another, Trump outlined his administration's efforts to deport protesting students and recounted his conversations with foreign leaders.
“One of the things I would do is I would deport any student who protests,“, Trump said at the second closed-door fundraiser, vowing to crack down on pro-Palestinian demonstrations on college campuses. “These people made a big mistake. Get them out of the country and I think that will stop it." After one donor expressed concern that some of the student protesters would end up "running this country," Trump urged the audience to "be really generous" to help him get elected. "If you elect me, we're going to set this movement back 25 to 30 years," he said. Since taking office, Trump has been trying to make good on that promise, sparking a series of ongoing legal battles between the White House and the judiciary over the scope of the administration's campaign of mass deportations - including against students who hold visas the administration is trying to revoke. At another fundraiser, the president pressed attendees to give more to his campaign, arguing that Republicans are at a disadvantage because “people on welfare will always vote Democrat“.
“Unions give big money, government workers give big money, and they have the benefit of welfare“, he said. “The only thing I have to say to my Jewish friends: You have to get them to start voting Republican”.
During the event, Trump also boasted that he had convinced a wealthy donor who had offered a $1 million donation in exchange for lunch with him to instead increase the amount to $25 million.
“And he did it, he gave me $25 million”, the Republican said. “That's crazy.“ The then-presidential candidate claims that he has similarly managed to get other people to donate much more than they originally planned. "You have to have the courage to ask," he said. "You have to make them think."