Is Trump a Russian asset? Fiona Hill on the President she worked for
4/29/202645 min
Fiona Hill served in Donald Trump's first administration and is one of the most authoritative voices on geopolitics. She advised on his Russia strategy and matters of national intelligence - before becoming a witness in his impeachment in 2019.
She has worked up close and personal with the President. And, as the war in Iran rages, and Putin continues to try and chisel Trump away from Europe's position on Ukraine, she came into the News Agents studio to try and make sense of the new age of international turmoil ushered in by Trump's second term.
What does she understand about the Putin-Trump relationship? Is the President compromised? Is Trump a fundamentally different man now compared to his first term? And is he backsliding America into territory similar to Russia?
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First 90 secondsEmily Maitlis· Host0:00
The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK, opening up a world of opportunity.
John Sopel· Host0:06
[upbeat music] This is a Global Player original podcast. Some people say, is Donald Trump a Russian asset?
Fiona Hill· Guest0:16
He actually had a very different risk calculation. They got emboldened. Trump himself is very prone to conspiracy theories.
John Sopel· Host0:22
Were you the one who would say to him, "I mean, this is batshit"?
Fiona Hill· Guest0:25
Trump would sometimes pick up on things and you realize this is Russian propaganda. He's become a kind of King George.
John Sopel· Host0:30
Well, King George was mad, wasn't he?
Emily Maitlis· Host0:32
Today, you'll be hearing the unmistakable voice of Fiona Hill, the Durham girl who worked for Donald Trump, has been right at the heart of his first administration, and has got plenty to tell us about the state of the world.
John Sopel· Host0:47
And she's also been a key person in advising this government on what it needs to do now that we have an unreliable partner in America. Welcome to The News Agents USA. [upbeat music] The News Agents USA with Emily Maitlis and John Sopel. It's John.
Emily Maitlis· Host1:07
It's Maitlis.
John Sopel· Host1:07
And Fiona Hill is this remarkable figure that when I was living in Washington, you suddenly heard this kind of key figure who's part of the national security establishment in America, and you think, that ain't no American accent she's speaking with. She is from the Northeast, and she's got a fascinating backstory. She became a key person, uh, advising Donald Trump in the White House, was with him on a number