Russian President Vladimir Putin has been busy delivering on promises made during his June 15 live call-in TV show "Direct Line," and his go-right-to-the-base success has some wondering whether showman-in-chief Donald Trump could make a similar move.
As Trump prepares to meet with Putin at the G20 Summit in Germany this week, the show is a perfect topic for sideline chitchat. After all, a similar venture would be a natural for a U.S. president with reality TV experience and an overactive presence on social media.
("Omg, not live!" White House aides must be thinking.)
During his show, Russians called Putin with requests related to concerns ranging from ineffective local leaders to disaster relief funds, housing and entitlements, The Washington Post reported.
The show "is carefully staged to show that Russia’s head of state … understands his people — and can solve their problems — better than anyone," the Post noted.
The New York Times described Putin during the four-hour show as "part Oprah, part King Solomon, part Avenger against an incompetent bureaucracy, and very much a modern czar."
Last week, TV cameras followed Putin as he visited the dilapidated home of 27-year-old Anastasia Votintseva to follow up on a promise to move her family and others by the end of the year, the Post reported.
"The important part of this choreographed display is not just the delivery of the goods; it’s the way that Putin projects his authority 'by dropping responsibility on the irresponsible elite,'" the Post noted, quoting veteran Russian political analyst Lilia Shevtsova.
Putin has done the annual call-in show almost every year since 2001, the Times noted. Organizers said about 2.6 million questions were submitted.
The Times pointed out an "absence of really tough questions and the seemingly easy opportunities for the president to score points with the public" despite denials by the Kremlin that the show was canned.
During the show, Putin criticized the U.S., sarcastically offered asylum to former FBI Director James Comey, highlighted economic growth in Russia and mentioned his two grandchildren, Fox News reported.
Then again, the whole summit might go down the drain if Trump critiques Putin's show like he did Arnold Schwarzenegger who took over "Celebrity Apprentice" for Trump.
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