Donald Trump has a strong appreciation for Russian president Vladimir Putin and would love to get his endorsement. The Republican frontrunner seems to have caught the interest of the Russian government, judging by recent reports of their alleged hacking of the Democratic National Committee's opposition research on Trump. In the early Republican debates, when asked about how he would interact with Putin if elected president, Trump would give a vague answer along the lines of "we'll get along." His response was the same when pressed for specifics. Putin has been similarly vague, simply calling the Republican candidate "colorful" and (at least in Trump's words) a genius. Although the Russian president appreciates Trump's interest in improving relations between the US and his country, the Russian government says they aren't picking any favorites in this election.
They are both prone to duck faces
Trump isn't bothered by Putin's authoritarian style of governance, and in fact seems to admire it, if his low tolerance for criticism in the media is any indication. We can only wonder if Trump's banning of Washington Post reporters from events is foreshadowing for a future attempt to gain control of media coverage, if not outright media control like what Putin has. Trump probably wishes he could deal with his critics the way Putin does, conveniently making them disappear or suffer unfortunate accidents. For some specific examples, journalist and outspoken Putin critic Anna Politkovskaya was found shot to death in her apartment complex in October 2006. Many suspect she was the victim of a government-sanctioned assassination. The next month, former FSB agent Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned with polonium 210 in London. Litvinenko had been feeding information about Russian activities to British intelligence agencies and media outlets and may have been killed because of it, even if some of his claims may have been false. The 2012 prosecution and imprisonment of members of the punk band/protest group Pussy Riot also stands out.
For me, Russia's apparent interest in Trump inspires speculation as to their motives. Putin and his cronies could be looking for dirt with which to manipulate Trump in the future, if simply appealing to his ego isn't enough. An American president who eases economic sanctions on Russia and looks the other way when they annex lost Soviet territory probably holds a lot of appeal for them. I may just be heading into conspiracy theory territory, but then again, no one believed Trump would make it this far.
