CNN anchor Anderson Cooper did not contain his bias against President Trump’s approach to foreign policy after the president’s joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday.

“As an American citizen, I just personally think today is just an incredibly depressing moment in our time, in our history as an American,” Cooper said.

Cooper did not seem to understand that the Helsinki Summit continues a long tradition of diplomacy and dialogue between the United States and Russia and that it is in the interest of both countries to have constructive conversations — especially for America as a counterbalance to China.

For Trump, nothing would be easier politically than to refuse to meet with Putin, but he would happily take political risks to pursue peace than risk peace to pursue politics. Even at the height of the Cold War, dialogue between the U.S. and Russia was maintained.

Part of Trump’s fracture with establishment Republicans was that his overall approach to politics is realism rather than rigid ideology. Trump approaches talks with Russia grounded in realism, and contrary to Cooper’s and other mainstream journalists’ sentiments, Trump said in Helsinki that he had “great confidence” in his intelligence agencies.

Cooper continued: “Former CIA Director John Brennan just tweeted, and I quote, ‘Donald Trump’s press conference performance in Helsinki rises to and exceeds the threshold of high crimes and misdemeanors. It was nothing short of treasonous. Not only were Trump’s comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican patriots, where are you?’ And that is a very good question. What are Republicans on Capitol Hill, a co-equal branch of government, what are they going to be saying about what we have just witnessed and heard today?”

Yet, for more than a year and a half, Trump has repeatedly said he believes the intelligence agencies when they said Russia interfered in American elections and has worked with Congress to implement sanctions against Russia. In January 2017, the president-elect said, “I think it was Russia.”

On July 6, 2017, Trump said “I think it was Russia.” On November 11, 2017, the president said “I’m with our Agencies.” On March 6, 2018, President Trump said “certainly there was meddling.”