Why Does Trump Still Refuse to Criticize Putin?

The president not only won’t denounce Russia, but he goes out of his way to avoid it—like when he thanked the Kremlin on Thursday for expelling U.S. diplomats.

Evan Vucci / AP

President Trump is most comfortable when he’s on the verbal offensive. He loves a good war of words, whether his target is a foreign adversary, a foreign ally, a Republican rival, or Rosie O’Donnell. According to

Donald Trump’s State of Mind, and Ours

As Donald Trump passes the six-month mark in office, his behavior has become only more bizarre, as if driven by the centrifugal force of his instincts.Photograph by Jabin Botsford / The Washington Post via Getty

The latest victims of a “hot mike,” that miraculous conduit of political candor, are