© Carlos Barria / Reuters U.S. President Barack Obama participates in his last news conference of the year at the White House before leaving for his annual Hawaiian Christmas holiday in Washington, U.S., December 16, 2016.
Friday's press conference, one of the last of the Obama administration, was dominated by the allegations that Russia interfered in the US election, but Putin in particular was the focus of much of Obama's remarks and reporters' questions.
Obama seemed taken aback that some in the GOP who have a long history of being hardliners against Russian influence had not spoken out more during President-elect Donald Trump's campaign.
"There was a survey some of you saw, where...Now this is just one poll, but a pretty credible source, 37 percent of Republican voters approve of Putin," Obama said Friday. "Over a third of Republican voters approve of Vladimir Putin, the former head of the KGB."
The poll Obama cited was published Wednesday by the Economist and YouGov. It had asked, "Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of Vladimir Putin?" to which 5 percent of Republicans answered that they held a "very favorable" opinion, while 32 percent said their opinion of the Russian president was "somewhat favorable."
"Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave," Obama said.
As If the Scumbag Could Know
Reagan helped end the Cold War - Obysmal's been trying to restart it since he started at the CIA out of college (likely long before - and still). (Once in - Never out.) Same goes for every US President back to Bush*t I.
R.C.