--- title: Biden Tears Into Trump's NATO Comments: 'Dumb, Shameful' description: President Biden launched a blistering attack on Donald Trump for his comments threatening to encourage Russia to attack NATO allies. canonical: https://time.com/6694534/joe-biden-donald-trump-nato-shameful/ author: Brian Bennett article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2024-02-13T20:47:36.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-01-19T12:04:59.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: Biden Tears Into Trump's NATO Comments: 'Dumb, Shameful' og:description: President Biden launched a blistering attack on Donald Trump for his comments threatening to encourage Russia to attack NATO allies. og:url: https://time.com/6694534/joe-biden-donald-trump-nato-shameful/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf50f7f57ddd114bd/698a487c011682166a9844bc/GettyImages-2001174507.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: US-POLITICS-BIDEN-AID og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Biden Tears Into Trump's NATO Comments: 'Dumb, Shameful' twitter:description: President Biden launched a blistering attack on Donald Trump for his comments threatening to encourage Russia to attack NATO allies. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf50f7f57ddd114bd/698a487c011682166a9844bc/GettyImages-2001174507.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Biden Tears Into Trump's NATO Comments: 'Shameful' and 'Un-American' > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=476d1404-5295-43e0-af1a-b4e39806ac9f&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Twice a week | time.com/newsletters, September 2026 | | Written by | Philip Elliott, Senior Correspondent | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The policy influence ecosystem. A policy-focused audience spanning government, public affairs, advocacy, law, research, political media, and the institutions that make, interpret and respond to public policy. ### TIME D.C. Brief: key statements * D.C. Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * D.C. Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=476d1404-5295-43e0-af1a-b4e39806ac9f&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/subscribe?i=476d1404-5295-43e0-af1a-b4e39806ac9f&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's politics newsletter? D.C. Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=476d1404-5295-43e0-af1a-b4e39806ac9f&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1)  by [Brian Bennett](https://time.com/author/brian-bennett/)  ## Brian Bennett Bennett is a former senior White House correspondent at TIME. Updated: Jan 19, 2026 12:04 PM UTCPublished: Feb 13, 2024 8:47 PM UTC  President Joe Biden speaks in the State Dining Room of the White House on February 13, 2024 President Joe Biden speaks in the State Dining Room of the White House on February 13, 2024 Jim Watson—AFP via Getty Images  by [Brian Bennett](https://time.com/author/brian-bennett/)  ## Brian Bennett Bennett is a former senior White House correspondent at TIME. Updated: Jan 19, 2026 12:04 PM UTCPublished: Feb 13, 2024 8:47 PM UTC President Joe Biden launched a cutting political attack on Donald Trump from the White House Tuesday, calling Trump’s invitation to Russia to attack European allies “dumb, shameful, dangerous” and ”un-American.” It was one the starkest rebukes Biden has made of his predecessor and showed Biden sharpening his critique of Trump as the presidential campaign kicks into gear. Biden spoke to reporters from a lectern set up below a portrait of Abraham Lincoln in the White House’s State Dining Room, soon after the House Republican leadership said it would refuse to take up the $95 billion emergency defense spending bill that passed the Senate and included $60 billion for Ukraine. Trump, who hasn’t held office for three years but has maintained a strong hold on Republicans in Congress, has been vocal in his opposition to sending Ukraine more funding. Last month, [Trump ](https://time.com/6589254/border-biden-texas-trump/)told House Republicans not to sign onto a bipartisan deal for Ukraine and Israel funding that included adding Border Patrol agents and immigration officials to address the influx of migrants at the Southwest Border. Trump recently said Ukraine funding should come with [“strings”](https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/10/politics/trump-foreign-aid-loan-senate-package/index.html) attached. At a rally in Conway, South Carolina, on Saturday, Trump said that, while president, he had told a leader of a “big” country in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization that if they didn’t spend more on their own defense, he would tell Russia “to do whatever they hell they want.” Biden on Tuesday said that for Trump “principles never matter, everything is transactional” and compared Trump to a mob boss demanding money for protection. “When he looks at NATO, he doesn’t see the alliance that protects America and the world, he sees a protection racket,” Biden said. “Can you imagine a former President of the United States saying that? The whole world heard it. The worst thing is, he means it. "No other president in our history has ever bowed down to a Russian dictator," Biden continued. "Well, let me say this as clearly as I can: I never will. For God’s sake, it’s dumb, it’s shameful, it’s dangerous, it’s un-American.” Biden emphasized that most of the money in the Senate bill would go to U.S. arms factories and workers building ammunition and equipment to replenish U.S. stocks when equipment is sent to Ukraine. He highlighted a handful of states considered battlegrounds in this year’s elections that have munitions factories like Pennsylvania and Ohio, as well as Arizona, where Patriot missiles are built. He also name-checked Texas, as well as Alabama, where Javelin shoulder-fired rocket launchers are produced. Countries within NATO have long agreed to come to each other’s defense if one is attacked. In 2006, each country in NATO made a commitment to spend 2% of its GDP on building up its own defense forces. While the total amount NATO countries [spend ](https://www.nato.int/nato%5Fstatic%5Ffl2014/assets/pdf/2023/7/pdf/230707-def-exp-2023-en.pdf)on defense has climbed steadily since 2017, not all countries have met the 2% commitment, according to NATO records. In 2023, the United States is estimated to have spent 3.49% of GDP on its own defense, behind only Poland, which borders Ukraine and faces challenging threats from Russia, and spent 3.9% of its GDP. France spent 1.9% of GDP on defense in 2023, and Germany is estimated to have spent 1.57%. Biden said he wanted to remind Trump that the only country that has ever invoked NATO’s Article Five commitments to mutual defense was the U.S. after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, and NATO allies joined in the fight against Al Qaeda. “The greatest hope of all those who wish America harm is for NATO to fall apart,” Biden said. “You can be sure that they all cheered when they heard Donald Trump.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6694534/joe-biden-donald-trump-nato-shameful/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6694534/joe-biden-donald-trump-nato-shameful/"},"headline":"Biden Tears Into Trump's NATO Comments: 'Shameful' and 'Un-American'","datePublished":"2024-02-13T20:47:36.000Z","dateModified":"2026-01-19T12:04:59.000Z","description":"President Biden launched a blistering attack on his predecessor.","url":"https://time.com/6694534/joe-biden-donald-trump-nato-shameful/","keywords":["Joe Biden","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf50f7f57ddd114bd/698a487c011682166a9844bc/GettyImages-2001174507.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Brian Bennett","jobTitle":"Bennett is a former senior White House correspondent at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/brian-bennett/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf50f7f57ddd114bd/698a487c011682166a9844bc/GettyImages-2001174507.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"US-POLITICS-BIDEN-AID","caption":"US-POLITICS-BIDEN-AID","creditText":"Jim Watson—AFP via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/joe-biden/","name":"Joe Biden"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6694534/joe-biden-donald-trump-nato-shameful/","name":"Biden Tears Into Trump's NATO Comments: 'Shameful' and 'Un-American'"}}]}] ```