Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) on Tuesday accused President Trump Donald John TrumpObama calls on Senate not to fill Ginsburg's vacancy until after election Planned Parenthood: 'The fate of our rights' depends on Ginsburg replacement Progressive group to spend M in ad campaign on Supreme Court vacancy MORE of sending a message to Russia allowing the country "free rein" around the world.

Murphy told MSNBC on Tuesday that Trump's lack of action in response to Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and silence in response to Monday's expulsion of American diplomats from Russia was empowering the country to gain influence in regions where it was previously "checked" by the United States.

"We are in the position we are in today because Donald Trump has sent a myriad of signals to the Russians that they have free rein around the world," Murphy told MSNBC.

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"To grow their influence," Murphy continued. "To interfere in other people's elections. To try to spread their influence into places we had checked them before."

"I think his silence on the expulsion of hundreds of American diplomats is yet another signal to Putin that he can spread his wings in his periphery without any pushback," he accused.



On Monday, Putin ordered the American diplomatic mission to reduce its staff down to just 455 personnel, a reduction of 755. In an interview, Putin said the new cap would match the number of Russian diplomatic personnel operating in the United States.

In the interview first reported by the New York Times, Putin said he had waited on the United States with the hopes that relations between the two countries would improve.

“We waited for quite some time that maybe something will change for the better, had such hope that the situation will somehow change, but, judging by everything, if it changes, it will not be soon,” Putin said.

The order to reduce diplomatic personnel is a response to a December order from the Obama administration that expelled Russian diplomats from the U.S. and seized two Russian diplomatic compounds, in Maryland and New York, that the U.S. alleges were being used for intelligence gathering. The move was itself in retaliation for Russia's election meddling.

Murphy said that Putin's actions to reduce American diplomatic personnel would ultimately just end up hurting other Russians.

"The irony is that, you know, Putin is expelling a bunch of people who help Russians visit the United States, so the detriment of these expulsions are mainly going to be to the Russian people, not to the U.S. government."