Anderson Cooper tonight called out President Donald Trump‘s ongoing dismissals of the Russia “hoax” despite what his own officials are saying.

“Now the president sometimes clarifies what he means by that, saying any notion of collusion is a hoax,” Cooper said, “but he often doesn’t make that distinction and seems to imply the entire Mueller probe into the election attack is a hoax, or the attack itself is one.”

He showed clips of Trump’s continued denials contrasted with what people like DNI Dan Coats and FBI Director Christopher Wray have been publicly saying.

“The president’s position on Russia often undercuts his administration’s position and the tough statements his own advisers make,” Cooper noted, “which raises the obvious question: is the president trying to have it both ways? Or it is now explicit white House policy to speak out of both sides of its mouth on a vital national security issue?”

He concluded, “Time and time again––one White House, two messages. And time after time, the president prefers the one that lets Russia off the hook.”

Watch above, via CNN.

[image via screengrab]

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