We don't need Russian Bots to tell us there is a misinformation campaign taking place as we crank up for the upcoming elections. President Donald J. Trump is taking care of that Russian misinformation issue in the way that "only Trump can." We now know that in addition to his and the GOP Senate's refusal to pass any legislation that could stem the voter manipulation tide, the president has other ways to handle the problem.

“Mr. President, with you all roads lead to Fordham.”  Before Donald Trump got his academic bona fides at Penn, with its acclaimed Wharton school, he spent two years at Fordham University in the Bronx. Close to his home, and run by the Jesuits, it is a fine school, by all reasonable standards, even if it isn’t Ivy League. In fact, the only reason it deserves mention, since the University keeps its Trump affiliation mostly to itself, is a partial responsibility for gaps in the president’s knowledge of history,

At the Democratic Party presidential debates, several of the candidates mentioned Russia as our country’s greatest threat, citing their attempts to influence the result of the 2016 presidential election. This obsession with Russia has infected the entire Democratic Party, including their elder statesman, former President Jimmy Carter.

Suppose right in front of the world's eyes, Franklin D. Roosevelt joked with the Japanese emperor after Pearl Harbor saying, “Don’t bomb Pearl Harbor again, please”.   Or, how about hearing somebody who has allegedly raped your daughter jest, “she’s not my type”? 

Would you be hurt? Upset? Angry? Outraged? Ballistics?

“We declared clearly that the Russian government did not meddle in U.S. processes, does not meddle and moreover did not meddle in the 2016 elections,” according to Putin aide, Yuri Ushakov, as reported by the New York Times.

It’s reassuring that Russia can still be trusted, though there’s a worry about the triple negative Ushakov uses in his general denial. Math aside, the president, allegedly, will straighten it all out when he meets in summit with Vladimir Putin next month, at which time superlatives will be expressed and best smiles flashed. The event, however, could do some good if it’s a substantive meet and not a P.R. stunt.

Has the news media and many Republicans such as John McCain and others over-reacted to the latest controversy surrounding President Donald Trump involving Russia?

On Tuesday, Trump announced during the middle of an Oval Office meeting and in front of the news media, that he called President Vladimir Putin and congratulated him on his election victory.  Shortly afterwards, John McCain slammed the President for doing so. Others followed.