The "hypocrisy is very high" concerning Donald Trump Jr.'s meeting with a Russian attorney, considering that a Democratic National Committee staff member "met with the Ukrainian embassy" to get dirt on now-President Donald Trump and his former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said Thursday.
"I just want to say I don't think Russia wanted President [Donald] Trump," the RNC head told Fox News' "Fox & Friends" program.
"I think the president articulated that very well. A pillar of Russia's economy is oil. We have now made the United States an energy independent with the Keystone Pipeline, Dakota Pipeline . . . this is not a president they wanted."
Russian President Vladimir Putin, though, loves that the "media has obsessed on Russia and created chaos in our system," she said.
McDaniel also discussed the ongoing work on healthcare reform in the Senate, noting that both she and Trump have called for the chamber's August recess to be canceled to allow work to continue.
"I'm traveling the country all the time," she said. "I'm in Philadelphia or Pittsburgh or Michigan and voters are saying, 'listen, we put our faith in you, we gave you the White House and the Senate and the House. You need to deliver. Because we need relief.'"
McDaniel insisted the Senate bill will pass, despite 10 Republican senators now saying they won't vote for the measure.
"I'm optimistic because there is a recognition that people are hurting across this country with premiums doubling," she said. "Deductibles are so high, insurers are pulling out of the marketplaces. In 2018, 44 percent of the counties [will have] one insurer."
She also accused Democrats of running away from the issue.
"This is the greatest game of hide-and-seek ever," she said. "Where are the Democrats on this? They put this problem in place and chose to abandon the American people for their own political gains. Republicans are working on it. But we have to get it done. The voters put faith in us and they are expecting us to deliver."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.