Matt Schlapp, chairman of the American Conservative Union, rejected criticism President Donald Trump received following his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying the president is still "tougher" on Russia than "anything" under former President Barack Obama, The Hill reported Saturday.

"[T]he policy coming out of the Trump Administration, as you pointed out, is two or three times tougher than anything we saw in Obama," Schlapp told Fox News' "The Ingraham Angle" Friday night.

"If you look at the export controls, if you look at the sanctions, if you look at the number of people being kicked out of the country, if you look at the bombing that the president has done. If you look at every criteria — the president's policy is tough," he said, adding, "But the Democrats have a problem with his words."

Schlapp explained Trump sometimes tries too hard to be "hospitable" when in Putin's company, but the end result of "the policies are what matter."

Backlash hit Trump swiftly last Monday following a statement he made during his summit with Putin in Helsinki where he appeared to side with Russia's claims they did not interfere in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The next day Trump changed his statement, saying he did believe U.S. intelligence agency information that suggested Russia meddled in the election.

Schlapp is married to Mercedes Schlapp, a top White House communications official.