Post President Putin playing Trump isn’t Russia’s first time getting the better of him. Back in 1988, during Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev’s U.S. visit, Trump invited and hoped the leader would stop by Trump Tower, even sprucing up the building in anticipation.
Gorbachev never came, but the Italian TV program Fantastico pulled a stunt by sending a convincing look-alike. Trump greeted him as if he were the real Soviet leader and had to be told after the fact that it was an impersonator.
“Soviet Stacks NY Deck with No-Trump Bid” Asheville Citizen-Times — December 7, 1988 07 Dec 1988, Wed Asheville Citizen-Times (Asheville, North Carolina) Newspapers.com
