A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
President Trump's relationship with Russia's Vladimir Putin is in question again. So is Trump's political judgment with less than a week before Election Day. The administration argues Trump is striking deals with Russia on things such as diesel to bring economic relief to Americans, but it's also testing the limits of his party's loyalty. NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez is following this. Franco, so how does a history between Trump and Putin inform where they've ended up?
FRANCO ORDOÑEZ, BYLINE: Yeah, A, the relationship really has run hot and cold for many, many years. And while it did cool a bit last year after Trump himself acknowledged the possibility that he was being played by Putin, it's really warmed more recently as Trump looks for help with the domestic economy. I mean, you mentioned the deal for Russian diesel. Trump also waved sanctions that target Russian officials and banks. At the same time, he's blasting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
MARTÍNEZ: Now, you mentioned how Trump said there was a chance that Putin was playing him last year. What about now? How does it - feel about it now?
ORDOÑEZ: Well, I mean, it's a really important question because that's being asked by many people right now. I spoke to Richard Fontaine, who served in the George W. Bush White House and now runs the Center for a New American Security. He told me it's important to remember that before becoming president, Putin was a KGB officer, where he was basically trained to do this just thing.
RICHARD FONTAINE: Certainly, the Russians are trying to take advantage of this moment. I think they see an opportunity here, one that may be relatively fleeting because the midterms are not too far away, to try to offer something to the president that would not only potentially help with his problem, but certainly help with theirs.
ORDOÑEZ: Now, the problem that Trump has, at least Fontaine says, is it doesn't look like the U.S. is getting much out of this diesel deal. The price of diesel hasn't really budged much since the deal was made. So not much relief for people at the gas tank.
MARTÍNEZ: But politically, I mean, isn't there value in the president doing something?
ORDOÑEZ: Yeah. It's important for any president, not just Trump, to be seen taking action on the most important issues that voters are most concerned about, and that's certainly been the cost of living, and gas is a part of that. The question is whether voters will reward the effort, especially considering Americans' critical views of Putin.
Jon McHenry, a Republican pollster, told me it also puts a number of GOP lawmakers in a difficult position.
JON MCHENRY: Because on the one hand, they don't want to cross or seem to cross President Trump, who's really important to midterm turnout. But on the other hand, most of them are pretty well established as being against Russia's attacks on Ukraine, against Putin in general.
MARTÍNEZ: Franco, long term, what could be some of the implications?
ORDOÑEZ: Yeah. I do think that's where it does get more interesting. Fontaine, who worked for Bush, was telling me that in terms of U.S. policy, all this should be looked at as one, basically, moment in time and not an irreversible policy or an indefinite shift in positions. And that's because as we've learned many times before - especially on these issues - that Trump often changes his mind.
MARTÍNEZ: That's White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez. Franco, thanks.
ORDOÑEZ: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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