Trump and the U.S. gain nothing from relationship with Putin

Despite the president's belief that the world's 'two big powers' could work toward a peace deal, only Russia's leader walked away from Alaska with anything to show for it

- JONAH GOLDBERG COLUMNIST

ALEXEI NIKOLSKY Associated Press VLADIMIR PUTIN'S objectives in Ukraine take time, and that's what Trump gave him in Alaska.

"I THINK THE MEETING was a 10 in the sense that we got along great." That was President Trump's rating-with 10 being the highest possible score, in case you were wondering-of his tete-atete with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.

Trump explained why he gave the meeting a perfect score: "It's good when, you know, two big powers get along, especially when they're nuclear powers." Because Trump sat down with Fox's Sean Hannity, whose interview style with Trump can be described as hard-hitting only if a marshmallow dropping on a down pillow can also be described as hard-hitting. We didn't get much of a follow-up, never mind a simple, "Why do you say that?" Trump seems to think - or wants people to think-that all that stands between the world and a nuclear conflagration is his bromance with Putin. That's preposterous and not worth dwelling on beyond that.

My view is that it's fine if our presidents get along with foreign leaders, but it's really not that big a deal. Good relationships are better than bad ones, all else being equal. But their utility is determined pretty much entirely by what a president gets out of them - or what they cost him.