Former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta insisted President Donald Trump had every right to tell his Russian counterpart congratulations for winning another term in office, although he cautioned that the United States needs to stay strong in its dealings with Russia.
Panetta told Fox News' "Your World" on Wednesday afternoon it is routine practice for U.S. presidents to call fellow world leaders following an election victory, as was the case this week after Russian President Vladimir Putin won his fourth term in office.
"Presidents talk to kings and emperors and tyrants, regardless of whether or not they were elected with any kind of democratic process or not," Panetta said. "So, I think the president has a right to talk to Putin and to, obviously, see if there are areas that they can agree with."
Panetta, whose long career in politics includes stints as a member of Congress, a White House chief of staff, and CIA director, did note he wishes Trump would have been a bit tougher on Putin during their Tuesday morning phone call.
"I guess my concern would be that if you're talking to Putin, I also think it's important to be straightforward and honest with Putin," Panetta said. "He is somebody that you have to be very straight with. And if you try to cater to him, he'll take advantage of it.
"So, I would have liked the president – in addition to asking about areas where we can work together – he should also mentioned the fact that there are lines we're not gonna let the Russians cross."
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