Trump comments on Putin cause stir

President Trump said he respects Vladimir Putin, and when told the Russian leader is “a killer,” Trump said the United States has many of them.

Trump has long expressed a wish for better ties with Moscow, praised Putin and signaled that U.S.-Russia relations could be in line for a makeover, even after U.S. intelligence agencies determined that Russia meddled in the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign to help Trump defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton.

During Putin’s years in power, several prominent Russian opposition figures and journalists have been killed.

When O’Reilly said he doesn’t know any government leaders who are killers, Trump said, Take a look at what we’ve done, too.

Democrats and Republicans took issue with Trump’s comparison of Russia and the U.S.

O’Reilly also asked Trump to back up his claims that some 3 million to 5 million illegal votes were cast in the Nov. 8 election.

Trump said he will set up a commission to be headed by Vice President Mike Pence, and “we’re going to look at it very, very carefully.”