TPM - This Was Not Normal: Russian Foreign Minister Edition (Josh Marshall's latest) [View all]

[NRaleighLiberal]

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/this-was-not-normal-russian-foreign-minister-edition

By JOSH MARSHALL Published MAY 10, 2017 9:45 PM

I wanted to add some context to one of the more surreal moments of this surreal day. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met first with Secretary of State Tillerson and then a short time later with President Trump in the Oval Office.

This is not standard procedure.

One obvious weirdness to this was that the meeting came on the first full day in which Washington was absorbing the shock of President Trump’s firing of James Comey – an evolving scandal which has Trump’s relationship with Russia at its core. The meeting was oddly timed to say the least. Many also noted that while US press was barred from the meeting, Lavrov was allowed to bring the the Russian state news agency to photograph the event.

All the photos you’ve seen are from Tass.

But there’s something odder about this.


Foreign Ministers don’t usually meet with the President of the United States. I’m not saying it never happens. It does sometimes, especially if its the foreign minister of a major power, which of course Russia is. It also happens when there’s some particular business of importance to be hashed out. But Foreign Ministers generally meet with the Secretary of State, Defense Ministers meet the Defense Secretary, etc. It’s a rather straightforward matter of counterparts, parity and status. A Foreign Minister meeting with the President, particularly a chummy meeting in the Oval Office, is not standard procedure and generally signifies a warmness of relations between the two countries or some specific business to be hashed out.

snip - more to read at the link