Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., said Wednesday he was surprised by the news that President Donald Trump congratulated Russian President Vladimir Putin on winning re-election.
"We'd all been in intelligence hearings all morning, we'd not even heard it. That was the first time many of us had heard it," Lankford told "CBS This Morning."
The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that Trump's national security advisers had written him talking points that told him "do not congratulate" Putin for his re-election.
"Presidents say what presidents choose to say, but they also need to understand they carry the weight of the entire United States, so I'd hope that every president is careful in what they say, including this one," Lankford said.
Lankford noted former President Barack Obama called Putin in 2012 when he won.
"Russia has not been our friend for a very long time, that's consistent, but I'd hope that the president every time that he talks to Putin would bring up things like arms race issues, human rights issues, and he would bring up election security," Lankford said.
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